The Aftermath
by Kitty1116
Summary: Gray and Claire try to forget about the night of passion they shared, but the pair quickly learns that one action can change everything even when you want to pretend it never happened. A sequel to my story A Lonely Beach. Rated M for language and mature themes.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One - Come On!

**A/N**: **I decided to continue on with this story! I just got in a Mineral Town mood I guess~ I have all the chapters planned out so this should get finished! Thank you for reading, now on with the story!**

"Come on Gray!" Kai grumbled, shaking his friend. Despite all Kai's efforts Gray didn't seem to be any closer to getting out of bed. Kai had been shaking his sleeping log of a friend for almost ten minutes and all he could get out of him were incoherent words and drool. He wasn't surprised. Gray had been out very late last night, not to mention he was sloshed when he came in.

Kai crossed his tanned arms and looked crossly at the bed where his friend laid. He didn't want to do this but drastic times called for drastic measures. "Oh shit Gray!" Kai said, faking his best freaking-out voice he could. "Your grandfather is here and he is pissed! You better get your ass outta bed!"

As if these were magic words Gray jumped from his hotel bed and scrambled to his feet. "Oh geez!" He grumbled as he rushed around his room trying to get ready in a mad panic. His golden hair was sticking off in every imaginable direction and he was still wearing his clothes from last night. There was even sand pouring out of the creases in his clothes. Ann was going to kill him when she saw the bed...

Kai let out a slight chuckle and Gray glared backward at him. "What's so funny?" He asked as he threw on a new clean white t-shirt and pulled on his trench coat, ignoring the sand as it scratched up on his arms. Damn the beach…

"It's Thursday." Kai said with a wide grin and all the rushing stopped. Thursday's were the only days Gray had off, and Kai had done that? Gray glared harder at his friend. "Well you wouldn't get up and you promised you'd help me, hung-over or not." Kai couldn't help but remember Gray's state when he had come home last night. Not to mention Gray was squinting in the light that filtered into the room as if it was blinding him.

"What am I helping you with?" Gray asked angrily, as he scanned the room for his hat. Where had he tossed it? Kai sighed, looking at his friend slightly disappointed, they had gone through just yesterday…

"You're coming to Claire's with me, remember?" Kai said, pointing in the direction of Claire's farm hoping this would revive some memory. But Gray just looked at Kai, nothing registering in his mind. Had he really promised this? "We're going to check on the pineapples she's growing for me…" Kai added, hoping to make something click this time.

"Oh. Right. The pineapples." Gray said running his hand through his blond hair, causing more sand to fall from his coat, clothes and hair onto the inn floor. Kai shifted his focus to their room which was becoming a sand box now.

"For the love of the Goddess…Did you leave any sand at the beach?" Kai asked looking at his friend with a slight smile, a smirk hiding beneath the surface "I don't understand how you managed to get so much sand in your clothes. What did you do? Roll around in the sand?"

Gray looked away, shaking as much sand as he could from his self. "Something like that…" Gray mumbled under his breath. Something a lot like that…

Kai looked at him, intrigued. "What were you rolling around in the sand for?" He asked with a smirk on his face. "Did you and Claire do more than drink last night?"

Gray stopped, turning towards Kai. Gray's eyes seemed alarmed. "How'd you know I was with Claire?" He hadn't mention to Kai that it was Claire he had spent the night with so how in the world did he know? What else did he know? Who else knew what Kai knew? Gray reached up to nervously fiddle with his hat, only to remember it wasn't there.

Kai placed an arm around Gray, a playful smile on his face. That bastard was enjoying making Gray dance. "So you did do more than drink then." he said, pointing at the hickey on his friend's neck. "Nice man, nice."

Gray pulled away, slightly grumpy now. "I didn't do anything last night besides drink," He spoke, defensively covering the hickey on his neck. "And that's a bruise! I fell on my way home."

"…On your neck?" Kai asked, the doubt clear in his voice.

"I was drunk." Gray spoke, his defensiveness raising the more he was questioned. "And how'd you know I was with Claire anyway?" Gray changed the subject back as he rubbed his neck. He would need to find something to cover up the mark…he didn't realize Claire had left such a large one.

"Rick mentioned something about me making him ruin his romantic beach date, and Claire is kind of Rick's girl so I just put two and two together." Kai the detective, said with a shrug. "Plus, you also said you were drinking with her last night. You were a real mess…"

Gray sighed softly. Claire was Rick's girl? He had learned that last night, but he wasn't aware they were serious. This was great, just great…

"So can we go check on my pineapples now?" Kai asked, looking at his watch impatiently. Gray sighed and nodded. How was supposed to face Claire? Was she just going to let it go or was it going to be the other extreme of her wanting a relationship? How did he even bring it up? Or should he stay quiet? He had a feeling that this was going to become awkward really fast…

"Claire, you are so awesome for doing this for me!" Kai said excitedly as he inspected the pineapple sprouts that were bursting up from the tilled farmland. Pineapples were Kai's absolute favorite food and he was just about jumping out of his skin with excitement.

Claire laughed at Kai's child-like excitement. "Really Kai, it's no big deal. I'm a farmer, it's what I do." She said, pushing her hair back from her face.

Gray looked over at Claire, taking her in as Kai babbled mindlessly about how great pineapples were. Claire was back in her jean coveralls today, her make-up from last night was replaced with dirt smudges from her garden, and yet Gray couldn't help but think she looked just as beautiful. He absently reached up and rubbed the hickey on his neck, recalling how the blond farmer had been his last night. He wondered if there were any marks hidden under those coveralls.

"It'll take twenty five days for them to finish growing." Gray watched Claire's pink lips say before focusing back on what was going on in front of him.

With this new breaking news, Kai became a shell of a man. "Twenty five days?!" Kai exclaimed sadly. "Summer will almost be over by then." Kai whined, looking distressed. Kai placed his hands on his purple bandana, thinking for some kind of solution. "Is there away way you can make them grow faster?"

Claire just stared at Kai as if this was the most stupid thing she had ever heard. "Please tell me you're not serious Kai…" Claire crossed her arms. "I can't control how quickly the plants grow, I go by their schedule."

Kai sighed; feeling defeated as he decided Claire was much more of an expert at this than she was. Not to mention that if he pissed her off too much she might not sell them to him at all.. "They better be good then Claire." He huffed.

"Of course they will!" Claire said with a bright smile. "I raise all my crops to taste their absolute best~" Everything was raised with love on her farm and Claire believed this brought out the best flavors.

Kai smiled happily. "If that's the case, I don't mind waiting then! But I have to go open the shack now." Kai said looking down at his watch. "Gray can you stay here with Claire and get how many pineapples I'm going to get and how much it's going to cost? Come see me at the store when you're finished." Kai said all this as he walked backwards then made a sprint to street, not giving Gray much of a choice.

Gray sighed softly and looked over at Claire, who was just shaking her head slightly at Kai. "Ha! 'Is there any way to make them grow faster?' I can't believe he was serious." She said with another soft laugh as she headed towards her farm house. "Come on Gray, I have all this stuff written down inside."

Gray followed after her reluctantly, watching her hips sway from side to side as she walked. Were they just going to pretend nothing happened? Gray thought this as they entered the house. Did he imagine last night? Why was he annoyed that she hadn't brought it up yet?

Gray surveyed the house as he entered since he hadn't really been inside before. Claire's house consisted of two rooms. One was the bathroom and the other was, well, everything else. Her house was very open, like many of the house in mineral town. There was single bed and a double bed placed in the corner with two small brown coffee tables placed to the left of them and that was considered the bedroom area. Then there was a TV and a book case right across from door which could be considered the main spot of the house. There was also a nice table for four sat near the TV.

"You can sit down, Gray. It might take me a minute to find the book…" Claire said, heading to her book shelf.

Gray sat down at the table and continued to look at the house, so he wouldn't have to focus on Claire. He looked over at the kitchen area on the left side of the house and then looked to the fridge. He wondered if Claire cooked a lot. He ate all his meals at the inn and never had he cooked for himself…

"There it is." Claire said as she pulled out a book and began to skim through the pages. Her voice interrupted his thoughts and brought his attention to her. Feeling Gray's eyes on her she offered a slight smile as she flipped though pages. "So how are you doing this morning?" Claire asked, without looking up from her book.

Gray leaned back in his chair and looked up at Claire's fair face. "Are we really going to do this?" Gray asked, feelin increasingly annoyed and now a little offended. Was it not good enough?

Claire looked up now. "Do what?" She asked, a confused look on her features.

Gray frowned. "Pretend that last night didn't happen." Gray spoke bluntly.

"Oh…That." Claire said softly, looking back down at the book. She walked over and sat in the chair across from him. "I was going to bring it up…eventually." She spoke quietly as she looked at Gray with soft blue eyes.

Gray sighed softly. "Is now eventually?" He asked, crossing his arms as he felt suddenly uncomfortable, and unsure if we wanted to have this conversation despite having been the one who brought it up.

"We should just forget it ever happened." Claire spoke in a way that suggested she was telling him rather than just suggesting. Gray almost was surprised. He didn't think that Claire was the kind of woman to just sleep around. Claire must have read Gray's mind as she continued. "I don't normally do stuff like that and I'm sure you don't either but… it's just that I kind of have this thing with Rick. I don't know where we are right now, if we're just friends or whatever but I'd like to find out." She paused for a moment, resting her eyes and Gray couldn't help but notice how long her eyelashes were as they swept closed. They were light too, meaning that blonde was obviously Claire's natural color. It reminded him of the starry night festival angel that his mother used to have when he was a kid. Claire's eyes fluttered open again and she added "and I'm sure Mary wouldn't be too happy if she found out either."

Gray looked confused now, perhaps dazed from studying Claire. "What does Mary have to do with any of this?" Gray asked, wondering how the young librarian was involved in the predicament which occurred on the beach last night.

Claire raised an eyebrow at him as if she knew something she thought was obvious. "I heard she liked you and I thought you liked her." She stated simply. "It's true right?"

Gray blushed slightly and went to pull at the brim of his hat. All Gray out was a handful of air. He sighed and blushed a little harder. He forgot he wasn't wearing his hat…

Claire smiled slightly, taking Gray's blush as enough as an answer. She walked over to her bed and reached under, taking something out. She walked back over to Gray and placed his beloved hat on his head. "You let me wear it home, remember?" Claire said with a smile.

Gray adjusted his hat, feeling much better with it back now. "Yeah…" He said, recalling how pretty Claire had looked in his hat. "I remember." She lingered close to him for a moment before speaking again, frowning as she studied Gray. "I'm sorry about your neck." She spoke softly, her hand raising to his neck.

The blacksmith gently batted her hand away. "It's no big deal…" He said, covering the marks with his own hand now. "Did you wind up with any?" He asked, trying to switch the focus off him.

He wasn't sure how he felt when Claire nodded, looking through her book once again and writing something down. Gray looked at her neck. It was spotless, not a mark anywhere. The young farmer saw Gray looking and smirked slightly. "I didn't say they were on my neck, or anywhere visible."

Gray blushed slightly, feeling embarrassed at the thought of where she could even be talking about. He cleared his throat, sticking his hands into his pockets. "Well, I should get going to Kai's…You got that stuff for him yet?" Gray asked, feeling uncomfortable and ready to leave.

Claire nodded, handing Gray a piece a paper. "Here's everything Kai needs to know." She said with a smile. "And remember Gray," Claire started, her eyes becoming serious. "Last night didn't happen as far as anyone besides you and me knows okay?"

Gray nodded, crumbling Kai's note in his hand. "Right. Nothing happened." Gray said, feeling a little better at the thought of keeping their night a secret. He didn't want to hear about it all around mineral town…

Kai was looking at the number's Claire had sent over and he noticed Gray was awfully quiet, even for Gray. "You okay dude?" Kai asked, focusing on his friend now.

Gray nodded quickly. "I'm fine…" He said, retreating to his thoughts. He was thinking about Claire, trying to block her out of his mind. He wasn't completely sure how he wanted to feel about the previous night. He felt a bit guilty since Claire and Rick were apparently getting close, but he also had a part of him that liked it. That loved it actually and didn't regret him in the least, but that made him feel guilty once more…

"Did anything happen between you and Claire?" Kai asked, as if reading his friend's mind.

Again, Gray shook his head. "No," He spoke, remembering the promise he made to Claire. "Nothing happened."

**A/N: Thanks for reading! What did you think?**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two

**A/N: Welcome back! Fun fact: I've been working on this story off and on since 2009. Pray for me.**

Claire was just finishing up on her farm. All the crops were all coming in nicely, and she was proud. The crops were like her children. She raised them from small seeds and made them into something beautiful. There was no job that could be more rewarding then hers, she often thought to herself.

The young farmer picked up her tools and leant them up against her farm house. They'd be fine there while Claire checked on the animals. One of the chickens was just getting over a nasty infection and Claire was worried about her slow recovery.

Hastily, Claire headed down to the part of her farm land she had made into the outdoor chicken coop. At first glance all the chickens seemed lively and well. The five full grown hens were pecking around and enjoying the summer's heat, but hiding in the corner of the pen was Grace. She was still a chick and obviously not healing as well as she should.

Claire walked over to the chick and picked her up, gently stroking her head. "What am I going to do with you?" She asked the small chick. Grace just curled up in Claire's hand.

"Want me to have a look?" Asked a voice from behind.

Claire turned around quickly, frowning a bit when she saw it was Rick standing behind her. She was still a bit sour that Rick had stood her up the other night. Claire was about to say no and ask Rick to leave when Grace let out a distressed chirp. Claire looked down at her chick and reluctantly held her out to Rick. "Be careful with her…" Claire said looking at the chick sadly as Rick took her into his palm.

The blonde farmer didn't need to tell Rick to be careful fore he handled chickens every day. He ran the poultry farm with his mother and well, his sister tried the best she could to help as well. Rick examined the chick closely and carefully. Chickens and corn were Rick's area of expertise after all and he took great pride in the raising and taking care of both.

"So, what do you think?" Claire asked after a few moments of silence.

Rick took in a deep breath before speaking. "Claire, this chick is very weak. She might not make in more than a couple days." Rick spoke honestly as he handed Grace back to Claire. "You should probably just sell her…"

"No way in hell!" Claire yelled, cradling the small creature in her hands lovingly. "There's no way I'll just sell away an animal because they're unwell!"

Rick adjusted his glasses, slightly taken back from Claire's yelling. "Claire, there's not much that can be done for this chick. And even if by some miracle she does make it, she probably won't be any good for laying eggs which is no good for a farm." Rick was honest, knowing that this was what Claire's livelihood depended on. Sure it wasn't pretty to admit or deal with, but this was a fact of both life and business.

Claire looked at the poor fluffy yellow blob that was nestled in her hands. She frowned at the thought of letting one of her animals die. Claire wasn't all business like Rick was, she had poured her heart into every inch of her farm and poured her love into every one of her animals' hearts. "I'm not selling her Rick." Claire said, and that was final.

Rick let out a soft sigh. "You're so stubborn Claire." Rick said, defeated. Rick was used to dealing with stubborn girls though, his sister was hell bent on doing the opposite of whatever he said so he had almost developed some affection towards the trait. Rick looked over at the blonde and her chick, a smile on his face now. "But that's kind of what I like about you."

Claire blushed before looking away angrily. "You didn't seem to like me too much last night." Claire said as she headed towards her house. Rick was quickly at her heels feeling the chill from her tone of voice.

"That's why I came here," Rick spoke, looking down as he followed Claire into her house. "I wanted to apologize."

Claire's focus wasn't on Rick, even though she was waiting for an explanation from him. She walked over to a small cardboard box she had near her fire place. Claire was originally going to burn it, but now it would make a good bed for her chick to rest in. Claire placed down one of her old shirts and placed Grace inside the box. The ill animal quickly fell asleep and Claire sighed gently, feeling at ease that Grace was resting but worried about if she would wake up. She then turned her attention to Rick.

"Well?" Claire asked, placing a hand on her hip, showing off her figure even in her work clothes.

Rick looked at her in confusion. "Well what?" He asked, taking in the stunning blonde, trying to figure her out.

"I'm waiting for you to tell me why you stood me up." Claire's blue eyes somehow how seemed warmed with rage as Rick sighed. He did have a very good explanation but he wasn't sure how well it would fly with Claire since she was already angry.

"Well, I walked to the beach early, I didn't want to be late for our date after all," Claire rolled her eyes at this, what a way to start… "and when I got there what did I see?" Rick paused ask if he was waiting for an answer but quickly realized he wasn't going to get one so he simply continued on. "I'll tell you what! That deviant Kai with my baby sister! And-"

"Rick, seriously? Kai is such a nice guy-" 

"How can your lips even say that woman?! He is trying to steal away my family!" Rick exclaimed with no shortage of arm flailing and intense facial distortion.

Was that really all this was about? Claire raised her hand and wiped some of Rick's spit from her face, her expression clearly not amused. "First of all, ew. Second of all, Kai is not out to steal anyone's family." Rick opened his mouth to speak but Claire covered his mouth with her hand. "Popuri is a woman now; she has the right to love who ever she wants. I get that you want to be all protective and brotherly but all you're doing is making your sister angry and causing Kai mental anguish, which he could probably sue for by the way…"

Quiet settled between the two farmers once Claire removed her hand and it was almost as as if Rick was actually taking all Claire said to heart… but let's be real: as if that was going to happen when Popuri was involved. Rick simply crossed his arms and his mouth became a straight line. "You just don't understand because you're not an older brother." Claire crossed her own arms and glowered at the blonde man in front of her. "You just don't understand because you're not a younger sister." She shot back. Claire had an older brother who lived in Forget-Me-Not Valley and if he was as protective over her as Rick was of Popuri she'd punch him. That simple.

It stayed like this for a while. Both blond farmers standing with their arms crossed and glaring at the other. Rick had met his match, Claire wouldn't be pushed over or chased off like Kai. It might as well been a mule and an ox having a standoff in the middle of Claire's farm on that hot summer day. After a while Rick finally gave up, uttering a sigh and mumbling 'you're so stubborn' under his breath. He allowed his arms to drop to the side and Claire mimicked the action.

"I'm really sorry I stood you up, Claire…" Rick said finally, his eyes showing true remorse. Claire couldn't stay mad, not when he was showing such sincerity, so she sighed, her exhale releasing all her anger.

"It's fine… it's not like I'm your girlfriend or anything." Claire said, realizing the truth in her words. While she liked Rick and she was pretty sure Rick liked her they weren't an official couple. Last night would have been their first date…

"You might be if I bothered to show up to a date." Rick said with a light hearted laugh, causing Claire to blush slightly. "How about I take you to the Poultry Farm and make you some delicious spa boiled eggs to make it up to you?" Rick didn't wait for an answer, he just took the girl by the hand and pulled her towards the farm while Claire mentally gagged at how Rick thought eggs were the answer to everything…

Gray found himself in the library that lovely summer afternoon, sitting at a table in the upstairs part of the building. He had thought about going to visit Kai at the Beach Shack but something stopped him. He told himself it was because Kai was probably too busy cooking for the 'masses' of Mineral Town to talk to him but deep down in his subconscious something questioned if it was because of Claire…

No. It wasn't. Nothing happened, he reminded himself. Gray had been trying to read the same chapter for past hour but the 'nothing' that had (or supposedly hadn't) occurred kept flooding back to his mind. Beforehand, alcohol had blurred most of the events but now he found them coming back… the way all of her skin looked so smooth when bathed in the moon's light, how she had freckles fanned across her chest and collar bones which he hadn't before noticed, and how deep her blue eyes looked as he-

No! That had to stop! Gray let out a frustrated groan and held his head in his hands. What was wrong with him? God damn…

"Is everything okay?" Asked a timid voice. Gray looked over to see the librarian, Mary, beside one of the bookshelves.

If she hadn't of spoken Gray would have never guessed she was there, but that was Mary. Even her beauty was quiet and could be easily over looked if you weren't trying to see it. You had to look past the frames of her glasses to see wide, adoring and innocent, brown eyes that were protected by long fluttery black eye lashes. You had to ignore the fact that almost all her skin was covered by clothing and you genuinely stare at her face to realize how white and creamy her complexion was and how rarely there was ever a blemish on her skin. And if you ignored the old book smell that embodied the old library you would be able to smell the faint scent of apple cinnamon which Gray guessed came from Mary's lip gloss or maybe even her hair… he wasn't an expert on these things but he did of course notice it and all of Mary's subtle beauty.

After sighing a little Gray finally answered. "Yeah, everything's fine." Now, while Mary wasn't extremely close to the apprentice blacksmith she knew him well enough to spot a lie when she saw one so she slowly and cautiously slipped into the chair beside him, hoping he wouldn't mind the company.

At first Mary was silent as she sat so Gray's mind drifted away. He couldn't help recall Claire's words from a few days ago 'and I'm sure Mary wouldn't be too happy if she found out either… I heard she liked you…' Gray glanced up at the woman who seem more like a girl to him than a grown lady. Her words were very mature but her look and cautious and shy manner reminded him more of a young school girl, not that it was a bad thing. He quite enjoyed the librarian's company. When Gray realized he was staring at Mary and that she was simply returning the studying gaze he felt his cheeks flush and looked down.

"Is it your grandfather a-again?" Mary asked, suddenly confusing Gray (who had forgotten what they were even talking about anymore). Mary read Gray's facial expression well and offered an answer to his questioning look. "What's bothering you, is it your grandfather again? I know he pushes you really hard sometimes. Only because he wants you to do your very best of course, but is that what's bothering you?" Mary wasn't sure if she should pry but she was truly worried about Gray. He would often let his temper get the better of him and yell at his grandfather, leaving himself feeling bitter then later on remorseful for yelling.

Gray was a little surprised at how well Mary knew him, he was also surprised that she was so concerned. But that was Mary, so very kind and sweet Mary. "Yeah…" He said a little shaking in his lie at first. "It-it's just grandpa again… stubborn old man." He reached up and fiddled with his hat nervously. Lying was probably for the best wasn't it? It didn't really matter if he and Claire had slept together right? They were both single after all and as Gray looked at Mary he knew he didn't want to say anything that would hurt her or make those brown eyes sad.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three

As far as summer days went, this was probably one of the hottest Mineral Town had seen in a few years. Gray had been miserable working in the heat all day long. Despite the high temperature, his grandfather refused to close down for the day or even slow the pace a little ("A little heat never killed no one!" The old man had claimed) so Gray had spent the day over a fire re-forging tools. When the apprentice blacksmith was finally allowed to leave for the day he nearly ran out of the shop, but he was far too hot for actual running.

As Gray looked around the street he could see the heat rising from the overcooked pavement in waves, distorting his vision. He threw his jacket over his shoulder and decided to trudge to where any normal person would go on a day that was hot enough to put Hell to shame: the beach. Gray had never really been a big fan of swimming but at the very least he could hang out with Kia and get him to make him a snow cone or an ice cream or even just some ice cubes at this point he really didn`t care…

The beach was filled with people by the time Gray got there. Ann and Karen were lying on matching purple beach towels soaking up the sun, Popouri was with the only two children in town, May and Stu, playing in the water, Stu's older sister Elli and Doctor Trent were playing life guard, and the women of the town were sat under an umbrella, no doubt gossiping. There were a few other people around but Gray was much too hot to care about them so he quickly made his way to the Snack Shack.

When he entered Gray let out a comfortable sigh of relief. It was unbelievably cool inside the restaurant. "Feel's great right?" Kai asked over the counter with a smirk. "I've had the AC on blast allll day long baby!" Gray laughed a little at his friend, his sense of humor returning now that he was cooler, as he walked over and sat down at the counter. Kai didn't wait for his order, he just slid a snow cone towards his friend. Gray took out his wallet to pay but Kai shook his head. "Nah, that's on the house!"

The blacksmith smiled at the cook, appreciating the kind gesture but at the same time feeling a little uncertain. "You're going to go broke being that nice to everyone Kai."

"Not after today I won't," Kai said, affectionately rubbing his cash register. "This heat wave is making me a very successful business owner!" With everyone spending the whole day on the beach they were also spending a whole lot of time (and money) at Kai's.

Gray scoffed slightly. "At least one of us is enjoying this." He muttered as he took a bite out of his snow cone. The flavored ice tasted as though it was produced by the Harvest Goddess herself. "Ah man, don't tell me your Gramps had you working in this heat…" Gray simply nodded at Kai, who looked at him in disbelief. "damn, is that man trying to kill you or what? It's bad enough working over a stove with AIR CONDITIOING, I can't imagine working over a fire!"

Before Gray could make any sort of comment he was interrupted by the timer on Kai's stove. The cook looked at him with a wide smile. "I forgot to tell you, I've got a surprise for you. So close your eyes." At first Gray questioned his friend but couldn't see the harm in playing along so he shut his eyes tight. As soon as Kai opened the oven door Gray was assaulted by a beautiful and familiar aroma. He'd know the scent anywhere: Kai's famous baked corn. This was a long time link in their friendship. Every summer Kai would prepare his absolute best dish of baked corn for Gray because it was his favourite dish and Gray in return would offer a critique of it (and other dishes) to help Kai. It was a win – win situation all around.

Once Kai allowed Gray to open his eyes again he drooled at the beauteous dish in front of him. "I think you'll really like this one Gray, I've had a lot of compliments on it today." Kai said, giving his friend the heads up to dig in. Gray didn't need Kai's words to know he'd enjoy the baked corn, he liked it every single time he had eaten it! But this time it was especially wonderful. The corn was so sweet and juicy and the flavour assaulted his taste buds in the most appealing way. Maybe it was just because he had such a hard day or maybe it was the heat but either the corn was perfection. "Is it good?" Kai asked when Gray had eaten half of it without saying anything.

The corn loving blacksmith nodded his head vigorously. "Best I've ever had, hands down." Gray took another large bite before mumbling through corn: "What did you do different this time?"

Kai smiled slightly. "Nothing," He started, "I just switched corn. I'm using Claire's stuff now. It's a hell of a lot better than the stuff that gets shipped in!" Gray's heart sped up a little when he mentioned Claire, He still felt nervous whenever someone brought up her name, the idea of people finding out about them made him uneasy. He took another bite of his corn, finishing it before he said "well, I guess she really does know what she's doing on that farm."

After he finished eating he noticed that Kai was looking at him strangely, like he had something to say. Gray raised an eyebrow and Kai looked around before saying to his friend "Have you heard the gossip?" Gray suddenly felt his heart in his throat and reached up to fiddle with his hat. "N-no… who do I look like to you? Manna?" Gray asked, trying to keep his cool.

Kai looked around again before looking back at Gray. "People are saying that Rick knocked up Claire. I heard it earlier." Gray was now just staring at him with a dumb look on his face that translated to 'wut?' so Kai continued. "Apparently it's true. Someone said that they heard the two of them talking about it at Barley's! I didn't even think they were that serious…"

Now Gray could feel the lump in his throat again. This couldn't be true could it? As far as he knew (at least from the night when Claire had been drunkenly telling him stories) he was the first person Claire had been with in a while. But Rick could have been with her soon after… Had it even bee long enough for her to know if he had…

Gray didn't like where his thought pattern was going…

Gray had been somehow got sucked into working the rest of the evening with Kai. Not that he really cared too much. He had gotten to stay in the air-conditioned building and after work he and Kai had shared a couple beers… well Gray had a couple beers, Kai had the other ten…

It was getting dark by the time the pair was on their way home. Gray decided to take Kai for a little walk in a feeble attempt to sober him up so they were headed down the road by the poultry farm. Kai was laughing away at something only he found hilarious when they ran (almost literally) into Rick who was heading back home.

There was a moment of tension when Rick glared towards Kai warning him that he better not be there to see his little sister in that drunken state but Gray assured him that they were just on their way home and didn't want any trouble. That would have been the end of it if Kai could have just kept his mouth shut, but that would just be too easy…

"Congratulations Rick, you ol' sly dog you!" Kai slurred, gesturing as if he wanted to hug his arch enemy but Gray grabbed a hold of him, not wanting his friend to piss off Rick any more than he already had by merely existing.

Rick raised an eyebrow, annoyed with Kai's drunken babbling as he turned to look at Gray. "What is he talking about?" Rick asked. Gray simply shrugged, wishing Kai would shut up and leave. "How am I supposed to know? I'm just trying to get him home."

"You know what I meaaaaan!" Kai interrupted with a large grin on his face. "I'm talking about your baby. Congratulations on knocking up Claire, didn't think you had it in you! Hahaha, I guess you would have had it in her-" Gray quickly covered his friend's mouth before he could insult anyone any further.

Gray felt his heart speed up and Rick's face turned into a jumble of confusion, but no one said anything right away. The silence actually lasted so long that Kai pretended to be holding a microphone and drunkenly slurred 'hello? Is this thing on?' before Rick finally spoke again. "What the hell is wrong with you?! You…you… you drunken buffoon! I don't want you spreading that kind of non-sense around my girlfriend!" Rick sputtered in a fit of rage.

"Girlfriend?" Gray asked quietly. When had that happened?

"Well…" Rick flushed slightly, fiddling with the collar on his shirt. "Technically not yet… But he still shouldn't be making things up! I'm a gentleman and wouldn't do anything like that to Claire when we're not even together!"

A feeling of both relief and guilt washed over the young blacksmith. Relief knowing that Claire hadn't slept with Rick and well guilt for being the one who had slept with her…

"Gentleman-Snentleman, I didn't make that up dude!" Kai said, waving his arms as if he were trying to wave away Rick's accusations. "Everyone has been talking about it allll day man! Maybe Claire-Bear isn't telling you something!" Gray covered his friend's mouth again but this time the damage was already done. Rick was beyond angry now, his face looking as red as a flare from a bonfire. "Get this dumbass out of my face!" Rick bellowed, the sound rattling through the nearby trees. "Stay away from me, stay away from my sister and stay away from Claire! Next time Harris is going to have to pull me off you!" Rick threatened his mortal enemy (aka Kai) as Gray pulled his friend away. While he was more threated by Rick's flying spit than he was his actual threats he figured getting out of there quickly would be in everyone's best interest.

Once they were on the street that held the inn as well as the winery Kai sighed softly. "Rick is such a little bitchhh. I didn't do anything wrong and now I'll never be able to see Po!" Kai whined like a child as they approached the inn. Apparently he had taken Ricks comments to heart a little in his non-sober state.

So Gray spoke with a sigh. "You weren't exactly smooth back there Kai… and since when have you listened to anything Rick said anyway?" Gray asked with an eyebrow raised.

The tanned cook thought about this for a moment then smiled happily. "Hey, you're right! I didn't think of that~"

Now that Kai no longer seemed distressed Gray looked back down the road in the direction of the winery. "Hey, do you mind if I take off now?" Gray asked, looking back at Kai. "I um, have something I want to do…" Gray couldn't stop thinking about Claire. He needed to see her and figure out the truth out of all this. He wasn't sure why this all bothered him so much but that seemed like the only way to ease his mind.

Kai waved him off. "Don't worry about me buddy. I can take care of myself." He said as he looked towards the direction Gray was looking at, wondering where his friend was off to. "You do what you got to man. Thanks for helping me today by the way…" But at this point Gray was already walking away. As he watched his friend walk into the brightening moon light Kai yelled after him "Beware the raft of Rick!" Just to be safe.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Gray had looked everywhere but he couldn't find Claire anywhere. She wasn't anywhere on her farm, she wasn't at the Harvest Goddess' spring, she wasn't on top of Mother's Hill, she wasn't in town… Gray had just about exhausted every possible place when realization struck him. Gray ran as fast as he could until he could feel the warm sea air against his skin and sure enough there she was. On the beach outlined in a silver silhouette from the moon sat Claire. The light danced across her skin making her look paler than she actually was and her skin glowed. Her eyes were closed so her pale but long eyelashes rested against her skin and her pink lips were curled into a soft smile. Claire's long blonde hair was hanging down around her shoulders and down almost to the small of her back, it shone slightly in the moonlight and it was drifting around with the light breeze. Gray felt breathless looking at Claire but he told himself that it was because he had just ran to the beach.

The young blonde was surprised when she heard someone walking up behind her. The farmer's small frame tensed as she jumped, quickly looking behind her to see who had joined her on the beach. Once she realized it was Gray she visibly relaxed and let out a soft sigh. "It's only you." She said with a soft smile as she turned back towards the ocean. "You really scared me for a second Gray. It's not nice to just sneak up behind people."

Laughing a little as he walked, Gray took a seat on the sand next to Claire on the sand. "Sorry, but it's not like I could have knocked or anything…" Claire was wearing a pair of jean shorts now and a white tank top. For some reason this surprised Gray at first, to see Claire dressed so casually but then he realized that Claire of course had been out working in this heat all day too. Claire noticed Gray staring at her and raised an eyebrow causing Gray to flush light pink and stutter that he was sorry.

A silence settled between the two as the soft sea breeze wrapped around them, playfully ruffling clothing and hair. Gray wanted to ask Claire about the rumors but this moment was too peaceful, too right. A piece of Claire's hair fluttered out from behind her ear, caressing her cheek and before Gray was aware of what he was doing he was reaching out and pushing the hair back in its place. Claire was looking at him now, shocked, with bright pink cheeks which reminded Gray of roses. But Gray finally realizing his actions turned his head away so that he was looking at the ocean. 'You are so creepy…' a little voice whispered inside his head as he reached up to tug nervously at the brim of his hat.

"So," Claire said, trying not to dwell on the moment that some might consider romantic. "Do you just come to the beach every night , or do you just have Kai tell you when I'm here so you can casually show up?" She brought her knees to her chest and rested her head on them, looking at Gray with a slight smirk.

"Trust me, Kai can't exactly tell anyone anything useful right now…"

"Drunk?" Claire guessed

"Fucking hammered."

Claire laughed a little, probably picturing a drunken Kai in her mind. "That somehow doesn't surprise me. I heard that he had quite the successful day so that seems like a pretty damn good reason to get sloshed."

She had heard? He had heard things today too… Goddess! Could no one in this town keep their mouths shut? There was only silence and moonlight between them now that Claire's laughter had faded away and Gray didn't know how to ask what he was thinking about…

The young farmer could read the uncomfortable expression in Gray's stone features and frowned softly. "You okay Gray? You don't have heat stroke or anything do you?" She asked, a hand reaching for the blacksmith's face. "Your cheeks are flushed…" She added as Gray moved his face away from her hand, not wanting to be touched by the hand he so desperately craved one night on this same beach not long ago. Gray mumbled that he was feeling fine but Claire dragged him to the water's edge and made him put his feet in the water anyway.

As the two blonds listened to the surf gently advancing then retreating Gray sighed softly before blurting out "So I heard this rumor today…" His eyes were watching Claire carefully for some kind of reaction but there wasn't one. The young farmer simply kept her gaze fixed yet relaxed on the ocean as it ebbed and flowed.

"Did you hear it from Manna?" Claire asked, letting her eyes drift over to Gray for a moment before going back to the ocean. "Because if you heard it from her it probably isn't true."

"Who I heard it from isn't really the important part…" Gray muttered under his breath as he reached to fiddle with his hat. How was he supposed to ask? There was no gentle way to do this… The blacksmith took in a deep breath before quickly spitting out the words at lightning speed "Everyone is saying that Rick knocked you up."

Gray had closed his eyes as he said it, as if that somehow made things easier, and when he opened them again Claire was looking at him with an expression that was hard to pin-point. It wasn't quite angry, yet softly shocked and in disbelief. "Are you stupid?" She asked finally, her Safire eyes narrowing at Gray. "Like I would let Rick of all people knock me up!" Gray thought that that seemed pretty harsh for the guy she was supposed to like….

Now Claire had her arms wrapped around her knees which she had pulled up to her chest. Gray couldn't help but be reminded of a small child trying to protect itself when he saw Claire like that. She looked smaller and vulnerable which only made Gray feel even worse about the next question he had to ask. "Well if Rick didn't…Did I?" As he spoke his hand found it's way to hers, grasping it softly in hopes to make this question easier.

It had been sitting on his mind the entire day. It weighed him down with guilt and made him feel like he had been carrying the heaviest burden. But now as Claire looked into his eyes, letting their two blue gazes meet and crash like the waves against the beach he felt better, especially when Claire let out a soft laugh. "Don't worry Gray. It's fine." Her hand freed itself from his and she placed it on his shoulder. "I'm not pregnant and I don't plan on it anytime soon."

Visibly relaxing, Gray let out a slight sigh of relief. He lowered himself so he was now laying down, his feet still immersed in the sea water. Claire mimicked the blacksmith and laid next to him, so close that Gray swore he could hear her heart beat… or maybe it was his. He looked over at Claire and felt the blood rush to his cheeks. "I'm sorry I had to ask that, but I'm not sure if we used anything or…" Gray reached up to adjust his hat in embarrassment but Claire pulled it off and held it against her chest with a slight smile.

"We did, and you touch your hat too much when you talk." Claire said, ignoring Gray's seriousness.

"And you touch my hat too much in general…" Gray grumbled like an angry child, making an attempt to grab his hat back but failing. "If you were anyone else I would be pissed right now."

Her soft laughter filled the air as she placed his hat on her stomach, lacing her fingers over the hat's brim. "You're only saying that because you can't get your hat from me." Claire looked at Gray, her eyes smiling as much as her mouth. He simply stared back, everything in him fighting the urge to pull her close and kiss her as he did in the beginning of the summer.

The young farmer felt her own cheeks flush slightly and looked down at the hat she was holding to. The two stayed laid close together in the sand for minutes that felt like years, the ocean echoing in the ears. In this moment Gray closed his eyes and allowed his mind to wander to the thoughts he had forbid himself to think about for the past little while. He thought about the pale skin that was hidden underneath her clothing, about the slight waist and hip bones, toned stomach and legs. He thought about how it felt to hold her close and kiss her, he thought about her soft touch. Never in a million years did Gray think that he would be thinking about Claire in such a way, Mary maybe, (someday he hoped, if he was lucky) but never Claire.

Mary… Gray opened his eyes and pushed the forbidden thoughts away again. He almost felt guilty now. Claire wasn't the girl he was supposed to be thinking about… Perhaps Claire had the same thought for now her expression showed sadness.

Pulling herself to her feet, Claire started to walk away, tossing Gray his hat as she moved. "Well, now that you know I'm not pregnant," Claire said with some kind of bitter smile. "You can go and be with Mary without any worries. I'm sure that's why you were worried but now you don't have to be. And I can go see Rick…and yeah…"

Before Gray could say or deny anything else the farmer was running away from him, her blonde hair flowing behind her like a cape. As he put his hat back on he sighed, feeling disappointed for some reason unknown to him.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The rain was falling steadily today, with no sign of stopping. The sky had been filled with dark and menacing clouds when Gray first headed to work early this morning and they looked no different when he finally left at four. It was this very rain shower that had brought him to the library… well that and a certain lady librarian.

Together they were sat at the table on the second floor of library, Mary with part of her novel in her hands, reading aloud while Gray listened, entranced by the young woman's words. "'In one swift movement, Sir Leo scooped Princess Katherine into his arms, vowing 'Whatever it takes My Lady, I will save you from this prison!' The last of his words were drowned out by the encroaching and devilish roar of the evil Lord Devon's murderous dragon...'"

"Why did you stop?" Gray's voice came quickly, almost as soon as Mary's ended. His voice filled the room differently than the librarian's, his fuller and deeper than hers; it grounded them in reality, pulling them away from the realm of Mary's novel.

His voice had come so suddenly that the small woman jumped slightly, startled. "oh, um, that… That is just all I have written." A smile came to Mary's, small cherry red lips though as she thought. "But you liked it then?"

Gray felt himself blush now, feeling embarrassed as he played with the brim of his hat. "Of course, and um s-sorry…" He mumbled, "I guess I was just too caught up in the story and-"

"No! That's simply wonderful!" Mary said in a voice that was much more steady and excited than her usual one. Gray's eyes widened a little at her enthusiasm and Mary blushed softly before she continued. "I mean… that's what's supposed to happen when you read. A-A good book sucks you in and consumes you into its world… Or at least that's what I think…"

A smile found its way to the apprentice's lips. He couldn't help but think how much Mary seemed to be coming out of her shell. Before trying to make conversation had been difficult for them, neither knowing what to say or how to make eye contact without being awkward, but that was no longer the case.

"I know what you mean." Gray said softly. "And that's exactly how I felt when you were reading. You're an amazing author Mary, thank you for reading your novel to me."

The pale skinned young woman sighed in relief though her eyes wandered to the floor. Her milky skin was flushed crimson now at Gray's kind words. "T-thank you." She said in an almost hushed voice. She looked up to meet his eyes now. "And thank you for listening… It's really nice to have someone who wants to listen…"

As Mary trailed off the two locked eyes, simply exploring each other's gaze without any words. The library had been filled with the sound of rain ricocheting off the windows and roof but all of a sudden it stopped and Mary spoke in a voice so soft and wispy Gray would look back at this moment later and be unsure if she had actually spoke or if it was just the wind.

From her small lips floated, "I hope we can do this more often…I really like spending time with you Gray."

Now that the rain had finally let up Claire was back out in her fields, letting all of her animals out to graze. Most of the animals were agitated, as they hated being cooped up inside, glaring at Claire coldly as she put them into their outdoor pen.

"Yeah. Yeah," She grumbled as she received an annoyed moo from Baby, the first cow that she had brought onto her farm. "I don't know how you guys are going to deal with winter!"

There was a soft chuckle as Rick appeared, watching as Claire struggle. "Don't worry too much, they'll get used to it, I promise."

Claire wiped her brow against her cotton sleeve, feeling sweaty already in the humidity. "What," She asked looking towards Rick, "All of a sudden you're a chicken expert and a livestock expert too?"

Again Rick chuckled and started to help guide a sheep into the outdoor pin. "You know I help Barley out on his farm sometimes too. The man isn't getting any younger you know, and his granddaughter is still too young to help him out." The sheep gave much less attitude to Rick than she would have to Claire, making the young farmer feel slightly betrayed. She was also a little touched though; the fact that Rick was always helping someone, whether it was his mother, old Barely, or Claire herself, she found it made her heart beat fast.

"You're a sweet man." Claire said, looking at Rick as he closed the pin door to. Her cheeks felt warm as he looked back to her as if caught off guard by her kindness. She walked a little closer to him, looking into his blues eyes. "You always spend your free time helping people Rick… You help me out on the farm all the time and…and that's just really kind of you."

Rick had been gazing into her eyes as she had said this, and once Claire was finished talking she looked away feeling as if she had gotten too emotional (which made her slightly nauseated). The blonde headed man was smiling softly, feeling touched by the rare glimpse of Claire's soft side. He reached down and gently clasped her hand in his. "Claire." He said in almost a whisper, trying to get her to meet his eyes again. "Claire, look at me."

Slowly, the farmer's eyes meet his again. Her face was trying to look harsh but her cheeks were flushed a brilliant red and her lips trembled slightly. "What?" She asked, her voice colder than it had been. Rick brought his lips to Claire's and kissed her for a brief moment before saying "I help you out because I care about you Claire. I like you… quite a bit."

Claire pulled away gently, feeling a bit like a school girl at how embarrassed Rick's words made her feel. For some reason she always found things harder with Rick… Not like they had been with Gray. That had felt so natural and easy, but Rick's affection felt different to her, just harder to accept for some reason. Gray's kisses made her want more, but Rick's made her nervous.

Rick felt her hesitance and sighed softly. His thoughts were drifting back to what Kai had said to him a few nights ago. He had also heard some of the other women gossiping about it too… Could that be the source of her resistance? He reached out and placed a hand on Claire's shoulder, squeezing it gently "Sorry if… that was too much. I just thought that we were close enough to-"

"We are!" Claire exclaimed suddenly, feeling maybe even more embarrassed by her outburst. She ran a hand through her blonde hair, speaking normally now. "We are Rick… It's just…" She paused, unsure what was holding her back. "I don't know man…" The farmer sighed softly as she sat near the wall of the barn, bringing her knees to her chest.

With a sigh of his own, Rick joined Claire on the ground. "Can I talk to you about something?" He asked, without looking at his sort-of girlfriend. Claire hadn't responded but Rick continued on, "A few night ago I was walking home when I ran into Gray and that trouble making Kai," Claire's heart sped up at the mention of Gray's name and then fear set in as she thought about their secret...

"To my surprise, Kai, being an intoxicated idiot, congratulated me on-" he made air quotes around the next part "-knocking you up! Now, obviously, I know that I didn't impregnate you because we haven't…" Rick began to fidget with his glasses as he cleared his throat before trying again. "anyway… It wasn't the last time I heard people talking about it and I was just wondering… Claire, are you… pregnant?"

Now Rick was looking at her, reading her for a response. Claire had relaxed when she realized the question had nothing to do with Gray. She knew Rick wouldn't be happy if he knew the truth of what happened the night he stood her up, but she didn't have to deal with that now. She stretched out her body, feeling more at ease. "I am not pregnant, Rick." Claire said firmly. "I heard a couple people say that too. You know where I think it came from?" Rick nodded and Claire continued. "That day I was asking you and Barley about impregnating my cows."

Claire recounted the day to Rick. She had decided to ask Barley what time of year he thought would be best to try for calves and Rick had been helping on the farm that day as well and joined in the conversation. It was entirely possible that someone walking by had heard the three of them talking about how to take care of pregnant cows and jumped to their own conclusions about Claire and Rick since their courtship (nor anything else is Mineral Town) wasn't really a secret.

Rick looked content with this explanation. "I didn't really believe it, especially when Kai told me, but I just wanted to check." As he spoke, Rick took Claire's hand back in his, gently rubbing his thumb over her callused fingers. Claire enjoyed the motion absently as her mind became to wander.

The calmness of the moment was cut short by a sudden clucking noise, which turned out to be the alarm on Rick's watch. "Guess it's time to head back and feed the hens!" Rick declared as he let go of Claire's hand and got to his feet. "I'll see you later on."

"Yeah, I'll see you later Rick!" Claire called out after him as he headed back towards the poultry farm. She sighed softly as he disappeared out of sight, bringing her knees back towards her chest. It was in that moment that Claire for the first time began to doubt the truth of what she had told Gray and Rick…


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six

It quite honestly amazed Gray how long the day managed to drag on sometimes. His hours felt like weeks and his weeks felt like years and he didn't even know what his year felt like… all in all, the young apprentice always felt like jumping for joy when quitting time came and today was no acceptation. Gray was thinking about a delicious meal at the inn while he hung up his tools back into their proper place. Sweet thoughts of baked corn were swirling around his head when Saibara walked into the room.

"Hmp, before you go racing out of here I have one more request for you to do for me." He boomed, his voice filling the room and effectively smashing Gray's thoughts of a tasty supper. Saibara's requests were actually demands meaning that Gray didn't actually have a choice in the doing the errand his grandfather was about to purpose.

Resisting the urge to beat his head off the anvil he worked on, Gray groaned and turned to face the old man. "What is it Gramps? I want to get out of here and eat."

"HA! Wouldn't hurt you to skip a meal or two, might toughen you up!" Saibara exclaimed as he pulled a piece of paper from his back pocket. "Anyway, I need you to go down to Claire's farm and check on her tools, make sure they are all in tip top shape. If my records are correct they haven't been inspected in a couple of weeks. Blunt tools can be dangerous!"

Gray felt a wave of relief wash over him. That was a task he could handle. Things between him and Claire had seemed to have gone back to normal now, or so he told himself despite the pounding his heart would do whenever he was with her. "Yeah Gramps, I'll get right on that." Gray said as he headed towards the door

"You'd better!" He heard his grandfather mutter before he shut the door.

When Gray had arrived at Claire's farm, he was surprised to find it empty… well, except for the chickens, and sheep, and cows. The young farmer was nowhere to be found, which was odd because Gray knew that Zack normally came to collect her produce at this hour.

"CLAIRE!" Gray yelled through cupped hands as he once again scanned the horizon of the farm.

"What are you yelling about, Gray?" Asked a weak voice that caused Gray to look behind him where a disheveled Claire stood in the door way of her house. As Gray got closer he noticed that her long blonde hair was stuck off in various directions and her face looked paler than normal under her tan. The young farmer was also in a pair of boxers and an oversized t-shirt instead of her normal farming attire.

Gray adjusted his hat as he stepped inside her house. "Sorry… I couldn't find you and Gramps wanted me to check up on your tools." He looked at her and feeling a lump in his throat he asked "are you okay?"

Claire nodded weakly, sitting down on one of her chairs. "Yeah… The tools are just in the box over there. Look to your heart's content." But Gray had lost all interest in checking her tools; he was more concerned with the young farmer, who was clearly not okay.

Taking the seat next to her, Gray gently pressed his wrist against her forehead and to his surprise Claire wasn't hot and also wasn't pushing him away. "You don't have a fever at least…" Gray said as he removed his hand, but sensing that she wanted to be comforted, he placed his hand on her knee.

"I think I just have a touch of sun stroke." Claire said looking into his eyes, blushing lightly from the contact. "It was really hot yesterday and today and I think I just pushed myself too much…" She leaned over and let her head rest on Gray's shoulder.

Without thinking, Gray gently stroked her head with his free hand. "Geez Claire, you need to be careful…" he grumbled quietly. Whenever they were together Gray felt the undeniable urge to be close to Claire. It felt very natural to him and he supposed that it had developed from being intimate with her that one time. Whatever the reason, he felt relief that Claire was allowing him to comfort her.

"Do you want me to bring you to go and see Dr. Trent?" Gray asked, but no sooner than the words had left his mouth he felt Claire shaking her head 'no'.

"I will be fine." She insisted. Claire then looked up at Gray, her blue eyes looking sad. "I wouldn't mind if you wanted to stay a little longer though…"

Gray agreed that he would stay but thought it would be best if Claire lay down. While Claire complied (a sure sign of illness), Gray quickly inspected her tools so his grandfather wouldn't chew him out.

"Well, your tools are in better shape than you are." Gray said as he sat down on the edge of Claire's bed.

Claire moved closer to Gray, so that her head was in his lap. "That's probably a good thing." She said with a weak laugh. A silence quickly settled between them and Claire felt a nagging feeling that she shouldn't be so close to Gray. This feeling was drowned out by her need to be comforted though. Her stomach felt like it was doing cartwheels and she kept feeling overwhelmingly dizzy.

His hand was stroking her head again now, and she felt very soothed by the action, letting out a sigh of content. Gray on the other hand felt saddened by the farmer's weakened appearance; it worried him to his core. "Claire, why are you pushing yourself so hard?" He asked.

Claire's eyes shut as she formulated an answer. "Because I have to Gray… So many people expected me to fail as a farmer here, I _have to _work a little harder to prove them wrong." She snuggled into Gray's lap a little more. "Besides, this is my livelihood now so I have to succeed."

It made sense. Gray had once doubted the blonde farmer, and now he felt bad for it, knowing how wrong he had been. She had turned an abandoned old farm into a successful business. Claire was one of the most capable women Gray had ever met.

He understood her need to push herself too. His grandfather always made him feel a similar way and he was about to tell her so when he felt Claire's body tense and heard her murmur a barrage of curse words before springing from his lap and cupping her hand over her mouth.

Gray felt very startled as he watched Claire barely make it to the kitchen sink before emptying her stomach contents into it. As she reached up and turned on the tap, washing out the sink, Gray made his way over to her. "I-I… Sorry I just couldn't make it to-" She stammered, unable to finish her sentence as her stomach heaved again. This time Gray pulled back her blonde hair from her face, hoping this would help.

"It's okay." He assured her. "It's okay Claire."

It had taken a while, but eventually Claire's stomach had calmed itself, and she found herself nestled in Gray's arms, a bottle of water in her hand. Gray held her close, as if he was protecting her. "I think it's fair to say you have more than a touch of sun stroke." He said looking down at her. The blonde head nodded and Gray heard a faint 'maybe'. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital? It wouldn't be a big deal, I am walking that way anyway."

"I don't want to go Gray… I just want to stay here and sleep." Claire seemed even weaker now. "I just need to sleep it off. I am okay." She insisted as she pressed her face into Gray's chest.

"Okay my ass!" Gray exclaimed, slightly alarmed at her calmness. "You just spent half an hour tossing your cookies!"

In response to this Claire simply shrugged. "It's not that big of deal Gray. People puke. It happens." Claire gently left Gray's embraced and laid down onto her bed. "I am going to try to sleep okay?"

Gray nodded, and then grabbed a scrap of paper and a pen from his pocket. He quickly scribbled the inn's number down on it and slipped it into Claire's hand. "You call me if you need anything, got it?"

Claire gasped the piece of paper tightly in her hand and nodded. "Thank you Gray… I'll see you soon okay? And tell Saibara thank you for checking on my tools. I really appreciate him always checking in on me."

"I'll be sure to tell him." Gray started towards the door. He was about to say goodnight to her when he heard a soft snore come from the farmers bed and he couldn't help but smirk a little. "Take care Claire." He whispered as he left.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven – What a Babe

Even though years had passed since they first met, Gray, Kai, and Cliff still made a point of getting together as many evenings as they could over the course of the summer. The three friends would fill in the blanks of each other's past year amidst a couple of drinks in a ritual of male bonding. Gray lived for these moments on rough days. When his grandfather had worked him as raw as the metal they hammered, he would think of a cold pint of lager and Kai's city tales (he knew most of Cliff's since they shared a room at the inn for the entirety of the year). Half way through Summer, this was the first time the three had managed to catch a drink together and they were wasting no time.

"So then: This giant man comes up to me right? And I'm like 'shit, this is this chick's fiancé! He is going to make me mince meat!' and then…" Kai was spinning one of his famous 'before- Popuri' stories in which he normally ended up flirting with the wrong girl and almost ended up paying for it with his life. These stories were always dramatic but very entertaining. This particular one Gray had heard before so he let his mind wander and as usual, his thoughts wandered to Claire. After seeing her in such a fragile state this afternoon he kept wondering if she was really going to be all right… after thinking himself in circles he decided that Claire knew what was best for her and he would have to trust her judgement. After all, it wasn't like he could force her to go to the doctor if she wasn't willing.

Gray tuned back in to the story just in time for the punchline and the three men laughed aloud, spilling a splash of beer with their giddy movements. After things had calmed for a moment, Cliff, who was normally quite soft spoken asked Kai, "Do you miss those days? Sleeping around and having adventures?"

"Dude, I still have adventures!" Kai proclaimed, half offended. "But I don't miss sleeping around. Was it fun? Hell yeah, but…" Kai's eyes looked away and focused on nothing in particular so it seemed like he was far away for a minute. "I would rather come home alone for three seasons of the year than come home with someone who wasn't Po, every night."

The blacksmith couldn't help but smile a little at his friend. He had grown up a lot in the past couple years. Before Kai hadn't really cared about anyone outside of himself but since he had started dating Po he started looking outside himself and taking more care to think of others. Cliff had seemed surprised at his answer but was interrupted before he could comment by the Inn owner's daughter, Ann.

"Hiya boys~" She sang sweetly as she threw her arms around Cliff, making him blush like a thirteen year old boy in love. The connection between the two was hard to miss, unless you were the two lovers. "What cha talking about?" Ann asked with a sparkle in her big blue eyes.

Kai took a swig of his beer before muttering. "Oh nothing. Just man stuff you know." He didn't want to get caught in the act of being mushy by Ann. She was rather childish and would no doubt mock him for hours on end.

The red head released Cliff and clasped her hands together in joy. "Oh good! If you're only talking about manly man stuff then I can steal Cliff!" Ann didn't wait for permission but simply started pulling Cliff from his chair. "I have new goodies for you to try! I have been baking all afternoon! Ooo, you're gonna love it!" Cliff looked at his two friends, then at Ann and despite his clear unease he allowed the young woman to pull him towards the kitchen.

"Five bucks says she doesn't actually have anything baked and the only thing she wants him to put his lips on is her." Kai said with a devilish smile as he motioned for the Inn keeper to bring them another round. After the empty bottles had been replaced with cold, full ones Kai took another long swig. "I wish those two would get it on already dude. It's actually causing me physical pain to hear poor Cliff talk about it _every_ summer."

Nodding, Gray couldn't help but to agree. "Cliff fell in love with Ann the moment he saw her. Everyone knows that. Well… Everyone except Ann." Gray took a drink, trying to keep up with Kai who seemed to chug back beer with great ease.

Now Kai set his sights on Gray, moving a little closer and lowering his voice. "Speaking of things everyone knows…" His devilish smirk was back and Gray felt himself become a little nervous at what might come next. "Own up dude, did you sleep with Claire that night we were supposed to meet up on the beach?"

The signs were all there and Kai had pieced them together like a two-bit detecive. Gray had come home that night covered in sand and hickies not to mention for the first while after his face would become red whenever Claire was mentioned as if it was some sort of allergic reaction. Gray found himself chugging his beer to help with the nerves and decided that since the rumors about Claire being pregnant had died down there was no harm in admitting it to his best friend.

"Yeah." He answered quietly, making sure no one else heard. "It was just that one time on the beach though. And I didn't know her and Rick were a thing."

Kai didn't care so much about the last part (he had tuned out almost immediately after the word yes) but started patting Gray on the back in a congratulatory manner. "Way to go man! What a babe! You nailed a babe!" The beer had clearly seeped its way into Kai's brain and Gray glared at him to keep it down.

"I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone." He explained, feeling a blush rise to his cheeks. "So you have to chill dude."

Almost as quickly as he had become excited Kai calmed back down, sipping his beer. "So, what does Mary think about all this?" He inquired

The blacksmith pulled at the brim of his hat nervously. "Mary doesn't know." He said curtly. They weren't a couple after all, so Gray felt no need to tell her about what had happened. Both he and Claire were trying to forget what happened so he could find no point in telling Mary about it. Besides, how was he supposed to just casually bring that up? Especially with someone as timid and shy as Mary…

Kai was about to say something when Doug's voice rose over all the chatter in the bar. "Hey Gray!" He bellowed, "Phone call for ya!"

Surprised, Gray made his way to the other side of the bar where the phone was. He couldn't fathom who would be calling him, especially this late at night. As he put the receiver to his ear he prayed to hear any voice other than his grandfather's on the other line "Hello?" he grumbled into the phone.

There was silence on the other end for a moment and Gray contemplated hanging up but then he heard a voice so pitiful that it instantly sobered him. "Oh Gray…I can't do it." Whispered the voice on the other end of the line.

Plugging his free ear so he could hear better, Gray turned to face the wall so no one could see his horrified expression. "Can't do what Claire?" He asked, trying to remain as calm as he could. The farmer sounded like she was in even worse condition than before. "Are you okay?"

"I can't put on a strong face anymore." She spoke in a tone of defeat and pain. "I think I need to go to the hospital. I can't even stomach water and I just… I just…" Gray waited for her to finish her sentence but she went silent except for a stifled whimper.

"I'm going to come get you Claire. Just try to stay calm." Gray said this while putting money on the bar for his drinks. He heard Claire mumbled something and then a thump. His heart skipped a beat. " Claire? Are you okay?" there was only dead air on the other side of the call.

Gray couldn't tell you exactly what happened directly after he was met with silence but the next thing he knew he was racing towards Claire's farm.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight – Positive

Gray had walked all the roads in Mineral Town at least a million times (to work, to the inn, to mother's hill, to the library, to Claire's) but if you asked him how he got to Claire's that night he wouldn't have an answer for you. After hearing a thud instead of Claire's voice on the other end of the phone Gray's body went into auto pilot: while his mind was playing a game of 'worst case scenario' his legs had brought him to the farm. He had broken into a cold sweat by the time he was standing at the front door. Panting, Gray flung the door open and prepared himself for the worse.

Seated on the floor next to the now unplugged phone was Claire, a tissue that was stained red pressed to her forehead. Her blue eyes were rimmed red and wide with shock as she looked towards Gray, who looked slightly deranged from fear. "G…Gray?" she whimpered. Gray had just been staring at Claire, taking the situation in with some relief, but her voice brought him back to the moment.

The young blacksmith knelt down next to the farmer and gently moved her shaking hand from her head. There was a three inch gash on the corner of her forehead, but luckily it wasn't too deep. "What happened Claire?" He asked looking down into her watery blue eyes.

Claire's eyes darted away from Gray's and she let out a strangled sob as her body shook. It was clear she was overwhelmed, so Gray decided it would be best not to push her. Gray fished into his pocket and pulled out his spare handkerchief, pressing it gently onto her wound, soaking up the new blood that had appeared "Hold that to you head, alright?" Gray said.

The farmer complied and a pale hand reached up and held the fabric in place. Gray gently slipped one arm under the woman's legs and his other arm behind her back, scooping her up off the floor with ease.

"What are you doing?" Claire asked in surprise.

"Taking you to the clinic." Gray said as he pushed the door open with his back. "You are pale, sick, and have a head wound Claire. You need a doctor." As the cool air hit them Gray felt Claire's body relax a little in his arms and her head to come and rest upon his chest.

After walking for a minute Claire spoke up. "I fainted I think…" Grey looked down at her but she was still looking ahead. "One minute I was talking to you and the next I was on the floor tangled in the phone cord…"

Gray just found himself holding Claire a little closer, feeling worry rise in his chest again. "It's going to be okay Claire…" He promised as he quickened his pace.

The duo had been lucky: they managed to catch Elli and Trent just as they were about to leave for the night. They rushed Claire in, Dr. Trent asking questions while Elli cleaned the wound. Gray held her hand as the doctor put in stiches and then drew blood.

Elli placed a tray with some crackers and a glass of water down on the bed next to Claire. "Try to eat a little something since we just took some blood and you've already fainted once tonight." Elli said, looking tenderly at Claire the way a mother would look at a child. "We should have some results in a half an hour or so. Just take it easy until then."

Claire nodded as Elli left them alone. Gray was leaning against the far wall, his arms crossed over his chest, just observing now. He felt uneasy thinking about the test results. What if Claire was really sick? As she sat on the medical bed in nothing but a thin white tank top and short pink shorts, she somehow looked frailer than when he first found her on the floor of her house.

"You don't have to stay, Gray." Claire said abruptly into the silence. Gray looked up at Claire in surprise, but she was looking down at her hands. "It's late," she continued, "And I'm sure you have better things to do tonight…you probably have to get up early too..."

The blacksmith walked over to the bed and gently placed a rough hand onto the tan one. Claire looked up into Gray's eyes, a little startled by the contact. "I'm not just going to leave you here alone." He said, his hand now reaching up to tuck a few strands of stray hair behind Claire's ear. The farmer noticeably shivered at the man's warm touch and Gray felt a flush rise to his face as inappropriate thoughts flooded his mind. Gray tossed his jacket at Claire and fiddled with his hat in embarrassment. "Uh, you can put that on if you're cold…"

Claire slid her arms through the jacket and pulled it close to her. Even in the warmth of the summer, Claire felt chilled. "Thanks Gray…" She gently placed her head on Gray's shoulder and he slide next to her on the bed. Gray looked over as Claire's body relaxed a little and he couldn't help but feel a little relaxed as well.

"…I didn't know who else to call." Claire said quietly, her eyes opening and gazing up at the blacksmith. "I felt so overwhelmed and so sick... and I just needed someone and you were the only one I could…"

Gray slipped his arm around her in an effort to comfort her. "You can call me any time Claire. _Especially _when you're not feeling well." Claire always pushed herself to be completely independent. Gray was glad to be able to relieve some of the burden. "Are you feeling any better?"

Claire sat up straight giving a little stretch as she freed herself of Gray's arm. "Yeah… I don't feel nauseated any more but that's probably because I haven't ate anything all day." She said with a weak smile. "I feel exhausted though. I pushed myself too hard…"

"You can sleep soon. That will help." Gray smiled a little, glad Claire was feeling better. He would feel much better himself when Claire was back to her normal self. This woman possessed an undeniable hold over Gray's peace of mind.

Two sets of footsteps echoed through the hall and moments later Elli and Trent stood in front of the two. "We've got some results for you Claire. Uh, would you like us to consult in private?" The doctor asked, casting a quick glance to Gray then back to his clipboard.

Claire also looked at Gray, then back to Trent and Elli. "No, he can stay." In all honesty, Gray helped calm her nerves. "I am sure Gray doesn't mind hearing whatever it is."

Gray shrugged, so the doctor continued. "Well, I think it's safe to say you have a touch of heat stroke. Luckily it's not as bad as it could be." Trent's face was solemn now. "You need to be more careful Claire. People die from heat stroke. Farmers are especially at risk with the nature of their work."

Elli shot Trent a look that Gray couldn't read as Claire nodded weakly. "I will be more careful from now on." She said, and truly meant it. "Is that all it was?"

The doctor looked over the sheets of paper he had on his clips board. "Yes, no concussion or anything luckily." Trent concluded. "Everything came back negative except for the pregnancy test. Probably the reason you were vomiting so much."

Gray felt his face blanche and Claire was positive her heart stopped. Elli stepped in now, trying to make up for the doctor's lack of tack, moving closer to Claire. "Did you suspect that you were with child, Claire?" she asked with concern in her voice.

The young farmer opened her mouth but no words came out, so she just shook her head. The thought had entered her mind once but it didn't seem possible. "Well Claire, you're about half a season along…" Elli went on to explain how to change her lifestyle so it was healthiest for her and the baby, and how if she wanted to terminate the pregnancy she would have to go to a different town and make the decision within the next week or so. She placed a couple of information pamphlets in Claire's hands and scheduled a checkup in a weeks' time for both the pregnancy and the stitches in her head.

Gray listened to Elli with bile building in his throat. His body felt heavy as stone and he felt shaken straight to his core. Elli smiled at him as she headed for the door. "Make sure Claire makes it home okay." She added as she left. Gray had simply nodded and then turned to look at Claire. He didn't know what to say to her; her expression was blank.

Claire was pregnant… He was the father. Gray was the first man Claire had slept with in a while; he remembered her sharing that story when they were drunk on the beach, so it had to be his child. How had this happened? They had used a condom. Gray remembered that. They had been safe. Now their one-night rendezvous had resulted in something that would bond them forever… if Claire chose that. Gray felt tightness in his chest at all these thoughts.

"Can you bring me home?" Claire's voice was very small in the suddenly large white room. Gray opened his mouth but Claire put up her hand to stop him, it shook. "I don't want to… I just want to go home." Gray didn't know what else to do so he simply complied. Claire was too weak to walk still so Gray got her to get on his back. It was almost funny to Gray how childlike this felt when they were going to have a child themselves.

As Gray walked past the winery, he was surprised to find that Claire was sound asleep on his back. She must have been so exhausted… she had been so sick all day, had hit her head, and now such heavy news weighed on her mind.

Gray's own mind felt like a bee hive. He didn't know what to do or say or if he should do either at all. Those would be questions for another day though, Gray decided as they entered Claire's farm. Gray reached for the door knob and was surprised to find the door was locked. Now what the hell was he supposed to do? He didn't have a key and since Claire's outfit had no pockets it was clear she didn't either.

Out of options Gray found himself at the inn's doors. He shifted nervously before entering, afraid what would happen if anyone saw him literally bringing Claire home with him. Luckily it was late enough that no one was left in the Inn's lobby and the lights were dimmed. Gray hastily climbed the stairs and clamored into his room, letting out a sigh of relief as he closed the door.

"um…? Gray, what's going on here?" Gray turned around to face Kai and Cliff who both wore a confused look on their face. "Dude, did you kidnap her?" A tipsy Kai accused.

Gray flushed a little at this and let out a growl of frustration. "it's a long story guys… I'll explain it all in the morning," Gray gently sat down of his and lowered Claire off his back. "The short version is that she got locked out and she's sick, so let's just let her rest, okay?" He shot his two roommates a look that could melt stone and both went back to their nightly routines.

Claire had curled herself around Gray, mumbling something about chickens in her sleep. He couldn't help but smile as he looked down at her peaceful form. He knew the future would be full of difficult choices but he for this brief moment he allowed himself to forget that and just enjoy the serenity of the farmer he had grown to care about so much.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine - Rick

The sunlight was dancing in through the window when Claire's eyes fluttered open and it took her several slow blinks to realize she was not in her bed. The thick green blanket that was wrapped around her was not her own and neither was the jacket that she was wearing. Slowly Claire sat up and looked around, recognizing right away she was at Doug's Inn…But how did she get here?

"Oh, you're up! Great!" Claire jumped a little at the voice but relaxed once she realized it was only Kai. The restaurateur walked over and stood by the bed. "I was starting to get worried. I figured farmers got up with the sun and when you didn't I was a little freaked out…"

Claire looked at Kai puzzled and a little embarrassed. "Sorry to do that to you Kai…but, um, how did I get here?" Claire asked, feeling a whisper of nausea roll her stomach.

"Oh that! Gray bought you here last night!" Claire felt herself blush a little as Kai spoke. "Oh, not like that. I mean, I am a little fuzzy on the details but he said you were sick and locked out?" Claire felt her face grow pale as the memories flooded back to her. _She had fainted, Gray took her to the hospital, and she was pregnant…_ Claire could swear at that moment she could feel the thing inside her, growing, already dependant on her.

"You okay there Claire?" Kai had knelt down so that he was eye level with her, looking concerned. He reached down and brought a black bin. "Gray left the garbage bucket here in case you puked. Need to make use of it?"

The farmer smiled weakly. "No, uh, I'm good Kai." Claire swung her legs over the side of the bed and looked towards the door, planning her escape. "I guess I will just leave then." She went to take off Gray's jacket but realized the only thing she had on was a thin white tank top which was much to sheer to wear around town.

Kai noticed her dilemma and snapped his fingers. "Gray left this for you to wear." He reached over on the night stand and handed her a neatly folded black t-shirt. 'Gray really thought of everything…' Claire thought as she slid off the jacket and pulled the t-shirt over her head. It was a band shirt for Forgotten on the Dance Floor, a band she had loved in high school. Maybe she and Gray had more in common then she thought.

Kai walked over to the door and opened it. "Come on Claire, I promised Gray I would make sure you got home safely." Claire smiled a little as she followed Kai. She wasn't in the mood to be with other people but she had a feeling that Kai wouldn't be talked out of his task.

As they exited the inn, Kai looked over at Claire and asked, "So what happened to you anyway? You're not going to die on us or anything, are you?"

Claire felt her stomach lurch as she thought about the night at the hospital, but she kept her composure. "I was an idiot and got sun stroke from staying out in the heat too long." It wasn't a lie after all; it just wasn't the whole truth.

"Dude, you need to be careful." Kai said, shaking his head. "If you die I won't get any pineapples."

Claire laughed, a real laugh too. It was the first time she had genuinely laughed in two days. Kai had a way of making people laugh even when they didn't feel like it. Probably because he was so honest it was hard to tell when he was joking or not. Kai continued to joke with Claire until they reached the farm. Then he patted Claire on the shoulder and told her to be careful before heading off to open his shop. Claire stopped at the top of her farm, taking in a deep breath of fresh morning air. She had over slept at the inn and would have to send today playing catch up.

At least that was what Claire thought until she saw a man working in her fields.

Rick laid a blanket down next to the honey tree and placed down a basket. "Sit, my lady." Rick said, gesturing to the checkered blanket. Claire sat down as Rick produced egg sandwiches and a bottle of lemonade.

"Thank you, Rick. You didn't have to do all my farm work for me." Claire felt guilty that Rick had spent his day running her farm while she had been asleep in another man's bed (even though nothing had happened).

"Claire, you are in no shape to do work!" Rick declared before taking a bite of his sandwich. "Besides… I wanted to do something for you."

Claire couldn't help but smile at Rick's kindness. Not everyone would be willing to work in a field in the heat of summer for her. Despite his edges, Rick had a good heart and Claire felt lucky to be on the receiving end of it.

"Claire?" Rick asked, watching the blonde woman take a sip of lemonade. "Why didn't you call me?"

That was a good question. Why hadn't she called Rick? He was closer than Gray had been… After a moment too long of silence Claire shrugged. "Gray was over earlier and he left his number in case I needed anything tool related. So it was just the number I had on hand." That's what Claire had decided. That was the only reason she had called Gray instead of Rick.

The chicken farmer was looking down, as if he were taking the time to consider whether or not he believed her. Because of Rick's kind-hearted nature he decided to give her the benefit of the doubt, but Claire had a feeling that she wouldn't be able to keep the truth from him for much longer.

"Come closer." Rick said to her suddenly, his voice soft. Claire happily complied, cuddling into Rick's shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her waist. The couple stayed wrapped gingerly in each other's arms until Rick reached for an egg sandwich. When the stench hit Claire's nose she couldn't help but wretch. As she pulled herself away from Rick and the blanket, it was like someone had suddenly upheaved her stomach. Luckily, Claire had nothing left to come up and since Rick had dropped the sandwich in shock, the nausea faded almost as quickly as it had come on.

"A-Are you okay?" Rick asked, crouching down beside Claire, her hands still planted firmly on the grass as she hung her head down, trying to regain her composure. "Is there anything I can do?"

Shaking her head, Claire slowly brought herself up to her feet. "No, no! I'm fine!" She reassured him with a smile. "I think it's just the heat…I'm still recovering." Claire noted that Rick didn't seem calmed by this statement and she couldn't help but feel guilty for lying to him. But how could she tell him the truth, that she was pregnant, when they were only starting to get close?

Rick rose to his feet as well. "Well, if that's the case, we should probably get you inside." The farmer said, gently taking Claire's hand in his own. Claire found herself blushing like a pre-teen as the two walked towards her house hand in hand. 'Get a hold of yourself woman!' she thought to herself as she found the spare key she kept under a nearby rock and unlocked the door.

Since Claire had kept all the windows shut and all the blinds closed when she hadn't been feeling well, the house was cool and dark. "This should be much better for you." Rick said, planting a kiss on her forehead. "Can I get you anything?"

"Hey, this is my house, I should be asking you that." Claire mumbled, a little embarrassed to be fawned over like something helpless. "Besides, you have already done so much for me and I really am feeling much better than yesterday."

Rick held Claire close to him, one of his hands resting in the small of her back, and the other placed protectively across the center of her back. "You had me worried Claire," He spoke softly in her ear, "I just want to make sure you're okay."

The young man pulled back just enough to look the farmer in the eyes. Rick's eyes were softened by sincerity that made Claire's heart swell with emotion. Without thinking about it the two were drawn together, kissing each other softly at first, but with quickly growing passion. They had been flirting around the idea of dating and being together for so long it felt so good to be close so suddenly and both couldn't help but want more. Rick's hands eagerly made their way to the bottom of Claire's shirt, and he ceased kissing her only to pull the shirt up over her head, and to mimic the same action with his.

"You're so soft." Rick whispered softly as he trailed his hand up from Claire's hip to her bare breast. Claire gasped softly as he took her nipple between his finger and thumb, pinching it experimentally. "I can't wait to feel the rest of you…"

The blonde woman pressed her hips against Rick's at the promise of more pleasure, feeling incredibly turned on already, and was surprised to hear him gasp and swell against her. This sent a shiver through Claire and gave her enough courage to undo the button on Rick's jeans, causing them to slide to the floor. Claire watched with an ache growing inside her as Rick's erection tented his boxers, causing the chicken farmer to stutter in embarrassment.

Claire laughed softly. "What? Are you all talk, Rick?" she asked, her voice laced with lust as she stroked him through his boxers. "I thought you wanted to feel the rest of me?"

Rick shivered at her touch, his shaking hand reaching down to rub her through her thin pink shorts as a blush blanketed his cheeks. "Just, ah…been a while…" He paused flushing even more before continuing "Since high school, actually..." he admitted sheepishly, though his confidence improved as he felt Claire buck against his hand. Claire stopped stroking him and eagerly pushed down her shorts, leaving her in a pair of satin pink underwear. The chicken farmer took a moment to appreciate the garment, feeling his dick throb when he noticed a spot that was becoming darker than the rest. "Goddess…" He said breathlessly as he stroked the wet spot. "Y-you're really turned on, aren't you?"

The only response from Claire was a moan and her continued bucking into his touch. She moved her mouth to Rick's ear, whispering softly: "I need more…" as she guided his hand into her underwear. The man moaned softly as his hand was guided past a mound of soft hair and down to where her lips parted. His breath hitched as his finger easily glided between her folds, her warm wetness coating him. "Up a little bit more…" Claire guided him, her back arching as he obeyed and found her clit. "Yes! Right there." She moaned as she undid the button on Rick's boxers and took his length back into her hand. He felt a little smaller than Gray, but if he kept touching her like this Claire would be more than willing to look past it.

After a few moments of mutual touching, Rick removed his hand from Claire's underwear and spoke up. "Maybe we should, um, get in the bed?" He asked breathlessly, looking into Claire's blue eyes, longingly. She nodded and took Rick's hand, leading him to her bed. Claire sat down and gently patted the space beside her, waiting for Rick to join her. Rick paused for a moment before he took a deep breath and pushed off his boxers, and then with his newly gathered courage he reached for Claire's waist, pulling her underwear down her toned legs. Rick tossed the garment aside, his gaze fixed on her mound, her pale, fluffy hair, and her soft folds already damp with desire.

"You can do more than just look." Claire reminded him, gently pulling him down onto the bed, though she had been staring at him too. She had been right about his size, and unlike Gray, Rick had been circumcised, not that it mattered much to her. As long as he quenched the thirst she was feeling, she didn't care what he looked like.

The chicken farmer gulped, nervous once more, as he slid into bed next to his lover. Claire gently stroked his cheek, hoping to help calm him a little. She started to kiss him once more and Rick melted into her actions, feeling his cock throb hungrily as she gave his lip a gentle bite. He pressed his lean frame against her and moaned softly as he felt her breasts press against him. This Goddess of a woman was killing him… could someone die from all their blood rushing to their dick? Rick felt like he might find out soon if he didn't do something soon.

"Do you…" he started, a flush appearing across his pale freckled face. He paused for a moment and wiped sweat from his brow. Why was this so embarrassing for him to say? They were adults for Goddess' sakes! He tried again, "Do you have any, um, p-protection?" Rick finally choked out.

The farmer nodded with a bit of a smirk. Was she getting off on how embarrassed Rick was? Maybe. "In the top drawer." She answered, then watched Rick open the drawer and pull out the small blue square. His hands were shaking as ripped the package open. He fumbled and almost dropped the condom causing Claire to giggle a little, before taking the it from him and placing it down over Rick's readily leaking cock. The man shuddered at her touch and almost released then and there but gritted his teeth and held on. "You okay?" She asked, concerned by the look on her lover's face.

"Y-yeah!" Rick exclaimed. "Just…a little overwhelmed." He admitted to her.

"Oh! Well, we don't have to-"

"No!" He answered quickly. "I really want to! I am just… a little nervous."

"Don't be." Claire replied lustfully, her lips finding his again. While they kissed, Claire lowered herself, so she was lying down and Rick was on top of her, allowing her to buck against him, grinding herself against his hard cock. Her eyes had fluttered shut as the two passed kisses between them and Claire was a little ashamed to admit that her mind flashed back to a certain young blacksmith and how he had brought her to the edge so quickly…

Rick pulled away, looking downward as he clumsily tried to line up his member with her entrance. Claire aided him, the heat of him so close to her feeling heavenly. But Rick was a little too eager, pushing too far, too fast, causing Claire to yelp as her hands clung to Rick's back.

"Shit..." Rick scolded himself, looking into her blue eyes with his own sky-blue ones. "You okay?" he asked, concern filling his voice.

Claire nodded, adjusting herself under Rick. "Just… go a little slower first." She instructed, and Rick complied, moving with much more care this time. Claire moaned softly now as his cock dragged slowly against her walls, feeling every part of her. Rick was in all the way now and Claire wished she could get him deeper. She wanted to pull this man so far in, he would never forget how she felt.

Rick moaned as he pulled himself out and pushed back in shallowly. She felt so tight and warm and he felt like he would lose control at any moment. "Can I move faster now?" He asked, and felt such relief when Claire moaned out 'yes'.

Claire's fingers slipped between her legs and she greedily rubbed her clit, unable to take the unattended to aching anymore. She moaned Rick's name softly, thrusting her hips against him as he sped up, her body twitching slightly as she rubbed her aching clit.

That quick squeeze of her muscles was the end of Rick. He tensed and moaned loudly as his body shook in orgasm, his cock twitching inside of Claire as he finished.

Claire tried to hide her disappointment as Rick rolled off of her, panting heavily. "That… That was…" Rick said breathlessly. "Just wow." He reached down to his rapidly softening cock and pulled off the condom, tying it in a knot and placing it in the trash bin before turning back towards Claire who was now back on to him. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, spooning her. "Thank you, Claire." He mumbled, fatigue growing in his voice.

Claire nodded weakly, taking his hand in hers. A few moments passed and Claire could hear soft snores coming from her partner. Now alone with her thoughts Claire couldn't help but let a tear slip down her cheek. Why did this feel so wrong? She was dating Rick… This was what they had been working towards, and now that they were here… Claire stifled a sniffle as she pressed her face into her pillow, trying to shake the ugly feeling that had settled around her instead of post coital bliss.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten – What now

"Do me a favour, would ya, and get out of my sight until you're ready to take this seriously!" Saibara roared at his grandson over an hour before they were supposed to stop for the day. "You're a damn mess! Get your shit together before you come back here tomorrow!"

"I got a lot on my mind, alright old man?!" Gray bellowed back, frustrated at his grandfather's lack of understanding.

"Old man?!" Saibara growled back, his face turning the colour of the fire they used to smelt metal. Gray suddenly regretted his comments. "GET OUT! NOW!" The elder howled as Gray ran from the shop, a brick of copper following after him and just barely missing his head.

Once Gray felt he was far enough away, he sighed and roughly racked his hands over his face and hair in frustration. He couldn't help but feel as if he couldn't do anything right. He felt like a terrible blacksmith now on top of everything else that was happening with Claire.

"Claire…" His thoughts drifted back to last night when she looked so small and fragile in the aftermath of the news. Gray looked towards the road that lead to the farm and began to walk, his body feeling heavier with each step. What was he going to say? Step. What were they going to do? Step. What would Claire want? What would everyone else think? Step. What would Mary Think?

After much inner turmoil Gray found himself once again on Claire's doorstep. Wasting no more time Gray knocked softly on the door then entered. He was surprised to find Claire sitting on her bed eating tomato slices in his band tee, her long blond hair twisted into some kind of messy bun.

The farmer blushed slightly at being caught off guard. "You know, you could at least wait for a reply when you knock…" Claire grumbled as Gray sighed softly and sat down next to her bed. "What if I had been naked?"

The blacksmith flushed a little and tried to shake the image from his head. "So what's up with the tomatoes? Forget the rest of your salad or something?" Gray asked trying to change the conversation topic as he fiddled with his hat.

Claire picked up a thin slice and popped it into her mouth. "It's all your kid likes alright?" She looked down at her stomach, unimpressed. "It's the only thing I have been able to stomach all day…"

Now Gray felt worse, which he didn't really think was possible until now. He reached over and gently rubbed Claire's back. "Sorry to hear that..." He spoke softly. Claire found her heart speed at Gray's touch and blushed a little more.

"You don't have to be sorry… " Claire placed the plate on her night stand then pulled her knees to her chest. She didn't know what else to say to him and even though she hadn't done any of her own farm work she felt beyond exhausted. Oh, how she wished she could go to bed and wake up to it all being just a dream.

Gray shifted uncomfortably on the bed, feeling much the same way even though neither had communicated it. Gray felt something crinkle beneath him and reached beneath the cover to pull out a ripped blue wrapper that Gray recognized right away. He felt his chest tighten as if he were swimming in cold water before Claire, clearly embarrassed, grabbed the wrapper and tossed it in the waste basket.

The nervousness in Claire's stomach turned to nausea and she wanted just crawl under the covers and never come out. In the moment sleeping with Rick seemed so right, but now Claire just felt sick about everything. Why was she such as mess?

"Are you going to try and tell him it's his?" Gray asked after what felt like an eternity of unbearably heavy silence. Gray felt sickened at the thought. That was the last thing he wanted: Rick raising his kid.

Claire felt tears burn her eyes and acid burn her throat when Gray spoke. "No Gray. Goddess! What do you take me for?" Claire's heart felt heavy that Gray could think so little of her. "The thought didn't even cross my mind. It just happened..."

Gray dragged a hand through his hair, knocking off his hat in the process, frustrated again. Of course Claire hadn't thought of that. She and Rick were dating after all; he shouldn't have been so surprised they had sex. It was what couples did. "I shouldn't have said that. I don't know why I did…Sorry." Gray apologized as Claire looked away and tried to nonchalantly wipe her eyes.

The two sat in silence for a little while longer, Gray rubbing his forehead and internally scolding himself for being an idiot, while Claire tried to calm herself and her stomach. Apparently the baby hated being upset almost as much as it hated food…

"Claire…" Gray spoke finally. "What are we going to do?" He was afraid to look at Claire so he stared at his rough hands, still a little dirty from his day at work. He felt like a little boy again, one who knew he was in trouble.

Gray took a deep breath and forced himself to look at Claire since she hadn't answered. She was still sitting with her knees to her chest, her blue eyes looking straight ahead, not daring to meet Gray's. She was busy thinking, running scenario after scenario through her mind.

"well…" Gray sighed, a little frustrated at Claire's lack of response. "Do you at least have any idea if you want to keep it or-"

"yes." The reply was swift and firm. The farmer was now looking at the blacksmith, her face looking rather surprised by she own curt response. Claire had realized in those few quick seconds that none of the scenarios she had imagined involved getting rid of the fetus. "They're part of me… I can feel them and… I think I love them already."

Gray couldn't help smile a little when he noticed that Claire was embarrassed about her reasoning. He hesitantly placed his hand on her stomach and was surprised to notice that it wasn't quite as flat as it had been when he saw it at the start of summer. "Has it started moving or anything yet?" He asked, gently rubbing her stomach.

The farmer shook her head. "Not yet. One of the pamphlets Ellie gave me said that happens in the second semester." Claire placed her hand on top of Gray's. "You don't mind right? That I want to keep them?"

Shocked, Grey shook his head. "I would have gone along with whatever you wanted." He said honestly.

Claire climbed onto Gray's lap and nuzzled her head into his shoulder. "Thank you." She whispered.

This decision only led to more decisions. What were they going to tell people? Claire didn't want Gray to be dragged down into the dirt along with her. She knew that her fall from grace in the eyes' of Mineral Town was inevitable, but Claire didn't want to take anyone else down with her if she didn't have to. "Gray…" She spoke quietly. "I could tell everyone that the baby is my ex's if you wanted. I went to visit my parents in the city in the spring and I could say it happened then."

Claire pulled herself back and looked into Gray's blue eyes and was surprised to see he looked hurt. "I really don't want that…" He said in a hushed voice.

Gently, Claire placed a hand on the side of Gray's face. "I didn't mean to upset you, but the town is going to turn against us when this gets out Gray." Claire's voice was very matter of fact. "We aren't together in any way, we're seeing other people. Mineral Town has old fashion values and this is not going to end well! You have to know that…"

By the end of her speech Claire was crying and Gray's heart was filled with anguish. The blacksmith gently wrapped his arms around the farmer and held her close to his chest. "I don't know what to do Gray." Claire sobbed into his shirt. She just wanted everything to be okay. She wanted to keep working on her farm and hanging out with Gray and Rick and Kai, but things would never be that easy again. Claire realized as she explained the situation that keeping the baby ultimately meant letting go of Rick.

Gray wrapped his arms around Claire, giving her a gentle squeeze in an attempt to comfort her. He rested his head against hers and stoked her back as he searched his mind for what to say to her, but he couldn't think of anything. Gray spent most of his days hammering away at metal, not dealing with people and it was moments like this one that made him all too aware of his deficit when it came to dealing with emotion.

"L-Listen Claire," He whispered to her. "We don't have to figure all this out today, alright? You made one big decision today and that's enough." Claire took a deep breath in and muttered an 'alright' against his chest. Since it seemed to be working at least a little, Gray continued to stoke the farmer's back. "Everything will be okay Claire." Gray told her when he felt her tears seep through his shirt. "For now we'll just keep it between us until we figure it all out. Just don't worry; it's not good for you or the baby."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven - Crumble

It was her fault.

That was what Claire was telling herself anyway, even though Gray would argue with her. Despite the fact that Claire and Gray hadn't even mentioned their secret to even each other in a week, everyone seemed to know. 'If only I hadn't had to go to the clinic…' Claire thought to herself as she strolled down the path that lead to the hot spring. That alone had aroused the suspicion of the townsfolk. Add to the equation that over the past week alone Claire had gained five pounds (despite not being able to eat anything) so that some of her favourite clothes were growing tight, people were putting two and two together.

Once she arrived at the spring she noticed Popuri and Karen whispering as she sat down on the edge of the pond. Claire ignored them, pulling off her boots and putting her feet into the water as the whispering continued. She had come here to relax and forget about things, but apparently that was going to be easier said than done. The young farmer was getting tired of the questions from everyone, even the thought alone made her sigh. Not to mention, today she had found poor little Grace cold and unmoving in the chicken pen, making her heart heavier than it had been in the first place. She had truly believed that she would be able to keep the little chick alive. She thought she could heal her, oh how she thought-

"Oh definitely!" Claire's thoughts were interrupted by Karen's exclamation and a cocky laugh. Claire cringed and part of her wanted to wrap her hands around her stomach to protect the baby from all the negativity flowing around her. Karen had had it out for her ever since she moved to Mineral Town and the moment that Rick took interest in her it had only gotten worse. Normally Claire didn't care about things as silly as being talked about but lately everything seemed to make her either upset or angry and she felt ridiculous as tears pricked her eyes.

'You chose this. Remember that.' A voice in her head reminded her, and she stiffened up, holding her head high as she cast a glare towards Karen. This wasn't high school and Claire refused to be bullied. Karen rolled her eyes and started to leave, Popuri waving to Claire as they walked past. When they were almost at the entrance, Karen made a fake coughing sound, muttering the word 'slut' under her breath and Claire shot to her feet in rage. "You wanna say that to my face you fucking bitch?!" Claire growled angrily.

Karen was clearly taken back by Claire's reaction. She had expected the farmer to lie down and take it and was unsure what to do at being called out. Popuri was clearly distressed as well. "You promised you wouldn't say anything mean!" the pink haired girl yelled before running off. Karen stared at Claire for a few moments longer, but ran after Popuri when Claire showed no signs of backing down.

Now alone, Claire wrapped her arms around her stomach holding it protectively as her shoulder began to shake and tears streamed down her face. "I'm sorry…" She whispered to the bump that was now visible with her dress pressed against her skin. "I'm so sorry…"

It was only about four o'clock when Gray made his way to the bar, but he ordered a beer with his supper anyway. Work was slowly killing him and things with Claire were just making things worse. He knew that she had been avoiding him lately to help disperse the rumors, but it was quite clear that it wasn't working. All week he had heard people talking about Claire possibly being pregnant, and as much as he hated to admit it, with the rate at which the baby was growing, they wouldn't be able to keep denying it for long. Sure, Claire was only about a season along, but since she was so lean and most of her clothes were tight to her skin to avoid it getting caught while farming, the weight gain was noticeable.

The blacksmith found himself in a constant sour mood ever since he had first heard someone whisper about Claire. 'How does no one in this town have anything better to do than talk? Don't these assholes have work that needed to be done?' Gray pondered all this as he downed his first beer, not even touching his burger. The lack of food in his stomach made him feel a little queasy after chugging his drink and that made him think of Claire and how sick she had been lately. 'Goddess…' he thought to himself as he moved his fries around his plate. 'Literally everything reminds me of her.'

Gray's pity party was interrupted by Kai sitting in the chair across from him. "Hey man, what's up with the sour face?" Kai asked, then glancing towards the empty beer glass he added: "And the liquid supper?"

The blond rubbed the bridge of his nose between his index and his thumb, trying to relieve the tension that had built up there. "Nothing…" He grumbled. "The old man is just working me to the bone."

Kai just blinked. He wasn't the smartest person in the world, but even he knew that Gray's answer was bullshit. Kai crossed his arms. "So, this has nothing to do with the rumors going around about Claire again?"

Gray clenched his fists momentarily and shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "No, it has nothing to do with that…" He looked down and moved his fries around his plate again instead of looking at his friend, knowing what was about to come next.

"Gray man… We're best friends." Kai said as he leaned back in his chair. "I can tell you're not just mad at your grandpa. I mean, you're always mad at him, but I can tell that's not the only thing on your mind…" Gray looked up hesitantly at his friend and sighed, causing Kai to continue. "You can be real with me man… Is Claire pregnant?"

Now, the blacksmith was looking away again, unsure what to tell his friend. He didn't know if it was fair to Claire to confirm the rumor. It seemed like such a delicate topic and Gray never had to deal with anything like this before. His silence seemed to be enough for Kai though as he gestured to Doug to bring them two more beers.

"Listen dude," Kai said softly, looking with a small smile. "Whatever happens, you'll get through it. But tonight let's just have a few drinks and forget about it all. If you keep stressing like this you're going to have an aneurism."

Claire was sitting under the tree on her farm as the summer sun started to set. She was hoping that the fresh air would help settle her stomach. She was getting annoyed that this 'morning sickness' was not limited to the morning. Claire was taking deep breaths, trying to focus on anything besides her churning insides when she heard footsteps coming towards her. She plastered on her best fake smile as she looked up to see Rick standing there. "Oh, hey Rick." Claire said as she pulled herself to her feet, making sure to keep her dress looking loose around her stomach. "I wasn't expecting you." Claire had only seen Rick a couple times since they had sex. Part of her was relieved about that because she knew she couldn't keep Rick in the dark for much longer, but another part of her was miffed that Rick thought he could just sleep with her and fuck off.

Once Claire studied the chicken farmer she realized that he had an uneasy look upon his face. She frowned a little and reached up to cup his face. "What's wrong Ric-" Claire's sentence was stopped short as the man slapped her hand away from him and Claire looked at him with alarm. "What the hell?" She growled.

"I have ears Claire!" Rick yelled back.

Claire stared at him for a moment wondering if he had lost his mind. "Um, so do I. Is there anymore to that explanation?" Claire asked, fighting back the nausea that was building up in her stomach along with the tension.

Rick scoffed. "Always such a smart ass…" He muttered, shaking his head. "Claire, I have heard the damn rumors. Everyone has! Do you think I am an idiot? Are they-"

Claire didn't hear the end of Rick's accusation because she ran to the edge of her farmland, unable to fight her churning stomach anymore. Claire was hoping that Rick would leave her alone to expel her supper in peace but he strode up alongside of her, cursing under his breath.

Rick didn't say anything else until Claire managed to stand up straight, wiping her mouth with a handkerchief she had pulled from the pocket of her dress. While she did this Rick grabbed the hem of her dress and lifted it up, exposing her underwear and her stomach, which was unmistakably a bump. "Fuck Claire!" Rick exclaimed as he let go of the hem, letting the dress fall back around Claire, who had tears of embarrassment flowing from her eyes. "I want the damn truth. I deserve the truth!" Rick yelled, clearly hurt.

The farmer wiped her eyes with a shaking hand. This wasn't how she expected things to go. "I'm pregnant, alright?" She whimpered, her emotions taking control of her. "Are you happy now?"

"It's sure as hell not mine." Rick stated, crossing his arms. "That's why you fucked me isn't it?!" He accused, spit flying everywhere. "You wanted to pin this bastard child on me, didn't you?!"

"No Rick!" Claire yelled back, pain clear in her voice. "I slept with you because it felt right… You were the one who initiated it remember?! I didn't want any of this." Claire's dog was now on the scene, hearing the distress in his owner's voice, and started to growl at Rick until he backed up away from her. "Maybe you should go."

As Claire started to sob, Rick clenched his fists and took another step back to leave. He hesitated and looked back at Claire. "Who is the father, Claire?" Rick pressed, looking at the distraught young woman.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter twelve – confrontation

"See? This is more like it!" Kai said with a smile as he leaned back in his chair. After four beers, Kai was feeling good and Gray hated to admit it, but he was feeling better as well. Kai always had a way of making him feel better, even when the situation was grim. Gray was sure going to miss his friend when he left in a few weeks for another year. He never understood why Kai felt the need to chase the summer until this year. The good things in life seemed to exist in such short spurts: sex, love, good times with friends, the heat of summer… it seemed only natural that one would try to make these moments last as long as they could. Plus, Kai was a baby when it came to the cold.

As if on cue, the door to the inn was violently pushed opened and like Kai's visit, the peaceful moment, of course, was cut too short. "WHERE THE FUCK IS GRAY?" a voice screamed. Everyone in the inn looked towards Rick, who was standing in the door way looking like a madman. He was panting heavily and very visibly pissed off.

Gray and Kai exchanged a look as Rick saw them and charged towards their direction. "Rick, what's wrong?" Gray asked, even though he already knew where this was going. He hoped if he just talked to Rick normally he could deescalate the situation.

Unfortunately, Rick was a dramatic man and once he got into a mood there was no coming down from it. "Are you fucking kidding me right now Gray?!" The man yelled. "You fucked my girlfriend, knocked her up, and you're going to sit there and play stupid?!"

Everyone in the bar was looking at them now. "Rick man, calm down and stop yelling." Kai interjected, only pissing off the chicken farmer more.

"You stay the hell out of this!" Rick raged, before turning back to Gray. "How the fuck could you?! Out of all the girls in this town, you just had to have MY girlfriend! How-"

"She wasn't your girlfriend Rick." Gray said, annoyed and growing angry. He had tried to stay calm but Gray got yelled at by enough people and was sure as hell not about to take it from Rick. "And what do you mean how could I? Claire and I were both single when we hooked up. It's not like we planned this baby." Gray said the last part more quietly though it did not matter, because the whole inn had gone so quiet you could hear the cicadas outside. "Listen, it was a one-time thing Rick. I am not going to interfere with your relationship anymore."

Gray was surprised when Rick started laughing. At first he had thought that the chicken farmer had finally lost what little of his mind he still had, but then Gray could hear the hurt in the end of the laugh. "You think I am going to keep seeing her?" Rick asked "She's been defiled by you and is pregnant with your bastard child-" Gray clenched his fists at this and Kai prayed to the goddess that Rick would be struck dead. "-do you really think I am going to stick around? Karen was right about Claire. She is just a slut."

There was a collective gasp as Rick's glasses hit the floor. Gray had never experienced such an automatic reaction before. Without even thinking he had gotten up from his chair and punched Rick, square in the jaw. Gray felt protective over Claire. He cared about her and his child and he would protect them both. "Don't you EVER say that about her." Gray ordered as Rick cowered, his knees shaking as he got up to his feet. "Claire is the strongest woman I have ever met. You wanna leave her? Fine, go ahead. She was way too good for someone like you anyway. But Rick, never speak about Claire or her baby like that again, because I will find out and I will fucking destroy you." Gray gave Rick a push towards the door. "Got it?"

Rick had never seen Gray so angry and it clearly frightened him. He took a few steps back, afraid to break eye contact with him, before running out of the inn without his glasses.

Everyone in the inn was still watching Gray, no doubt judging him for having pre-material sex and impregnating someone else's 'girlfriend'. The blacksmith sighed and grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair, ignoring the room of spectators. Kai grabbed him by the sleeve. "Woah man, you can't chase after him!"

Now it was Gray's turn to laugh. "As if I would waste my time on that idiot." Gray said as put his jacket on. "I'm going to check on Claire. He obviously got his information from her and if he was that vicious towards me I am worried about what he said to her…"

When Gray reached Claire's farm, the sun had finally set and all was quiet. It was so quiet that once Gray reached the door he could hear muffled sobs on the other side. He didn't even knock this time. Knowing that Claire was crying, he didn't feel like wasting anytime by knocking.

As Gray entered the house, Claire's dog eyed him wearily and Gray took that as another bad sign since the animal was normally jovial. Gray found Claire lying near the side of her bed, a pillow clutched to her chest and a garbage pail placed by her bedside. The blacksmith felt his heart drop at the sight of her. Claire was normally so full of fight and strength, but between the pregnancy and all the drama she had been drained.

"Claire…" Gray said softly as he approached the bed and sat down beside her. "Are you okay?"

Claire tried to wipe her eyes and act like she wasn't devastated "Oh, hey Gray…I didn't hear you come in." She muttered as she sat up beside him. Silence settled between them for a few moments before Claire turned her head towards Gray and spoke in a whisper "He came and confronted you didn't he?"

Gray nodded as he slid off his coat. "He sure did. Kai and I were at the inn and Rick came in screaming like a lunatic." Claire put her head in her hands and Gray heard her whimper as she tried to hold back tears. The blacksmith, deciding there was no longer any reason not to, pulled her onto his lap and held her close to him. Claire wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her head on his shoulder, accepting the comfort. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess…This baby has turned me into a crybaby."

"It's okay Claire. You've got a lot going on right now." Gray reassured her. "You don't need to apologize for feeling overwhelmed." Gray felt her nod against his chest and she left out a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. Gray couldn't help but think that if he was in Claire's place he would be a mess too.

"What did he say to you?" Claire asked hesitantly, her red rimmed eyes looking up at Gray.

He shifted uncomfortably, not really wanting to repeat the cruel things that Rick had said. "Claire, are you really sure that is a good idea?" he asked. "I don't want you to be anymore stressed out than you already are…"

Claire nuzzled Gray's shoulder. "I can just imagine what he said…" The farmer clenched her eyes shut. "he was so angry when he left here Gray… I thought he was going to kill you."

The blacksmith smiled weakly. "Like Rick could kill me. I would flatten him before he got a chance." He felt himself relax a little when he heard Claire let out as small laugh. "I, uh… I did punch him though." Gray admitted sheepishly, unsure how Claire would react.

"That bad huh?" was her only response and Gray just nodded his head.

"Yeah… It got kind of ugly." Gray stroked her hair, feeling a little guilty. "I tried to be civil, but that egghead had to be over the top about it all."

"I can understand why he's so angry though…" Gray felt Claire tracing shapes against the fabric of his shirt as she spoke. "I messed everything up. I'm a horrible person." The farmer was sobbing again now. She had come into town and her presence seemed to corrode the lives of the people who got to close to her.

Gray gently brought Claire away from his chest and tilted her head to look up at him. "Claire, you are not a horrible person." He reassured her. "We were two single people, who had sex, even used protection, and…sometimes things just happen, Claire. They don't make you a bad person." After a moment of silence Gray offered her a weak smile and added: "If you were a horrible person, you would have sucker punched Rick."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen – Coming clean

Despite all the complaining he did, Gray really did love blacksmithing. The act of taking raw minerals and working them into something new and useful was something that Gray found beautiful and fulfilling… when his grandfather wasn't breathing down his neck like he was now, anyway. Despite understanding his grandson's love for the anvil, Saibara was very confused as to why Gray was still working in the forge a half an hour after closing time.

"Boy…" Saibara started, his voice puzzled. "I don't know what you're trying to avoid, but I am kicking you out now. You're messing up my schedule."

"What could you possibly be doing that I am keeping you from?" Gray asked as he put down his tools. "Besides, aren't you the one always pushing me to work harder?"

His grandfather furrowed his brow. "Oh, I'm sorry! Should I just go tell Barley that my grandson says I don't need to join him for cards? Or maybe go see Ellen and tell her 'Oh sorry Ellen, I know you're sick but my GRANDSON SAYS-'"

"Okay! I get it!" Gray yelled in defeat, taking off his gear.

"Good! Now get out." Saibara said almost cheerfully as he opened the door and ushered his grandson out.

Gray took a deep breath, his nerves feeling like frayed wires. He'd been using work as an escape for the past couple days, working late, starting early, trying to avoid everyone. People had started asking about Claire and him. Just yesterday, Manna, the town gossip, had stopped him on his way past her house. She had made small talk at first, asking about his work and his grandfather's health but she wasted no time diving into what she wanted.

'_So I heard you're going to be a father! Is that true? That must be so exciting for you and Claire. I didn't even know you were together! You're an interesting combination. I thought she was going after Lillian's boy, but he is an odd bird, isn't he? How long have you two been a thing?' _

Manna knew all the answers to the questions she was asking. She was one of those people who got some sick satisfaction out of talking to people about the messes they had made. She knew damn well that Claire was pregnant with his child (her husband had been at the Inn during Rick's outburst) and she knew that him and Claire weren't together.

She hadn't been the first person to ask him about Claire either. He was flabbergasted at the gall some of the town's folk had… Inserting themselves into other people's narratives without being asked or wanted…

But there was one person that Gray was avoiding in particular. He still hadn't spoken to Mary yet. Sure, they weren't a couple, but he felt like they had spent enough time flirting with each other that he owed her some kind of explanation, some kind of closure, something...

So, with a heavy heart, Gray started walking towards the library.

Since it was a Friday, the library was even more quiet than it normally was. Gray felt ashamed knowing that he would not be able to let the library stay so calm and peaceful….

Mary was back on to him, organizing one of the many book shelves when he walked in. After she finished what she was doing, she turned around and was a little startled by Gray's presence. "Oh! Gray, y-you startled me." She gasped out, her small hand flying to her chest as she took a deep breath. "I didn't even hear the door. I must have been too wrapped up in my thoughts." She let a sweet giggle pass her small lips. "Silly me." The young woman chided herself as she made her way back to her desk.

The blacksmith just stood there awkwardly. He had not been expecting such a warm reception from Mary. He had assumed she had heard about he and Claire and would be very upset with him. He had expected her to yell at him, to cry, to throw books at him when she set her kind brown eyes on him but seeing her smile cheerfully at him now was somehow even worse.

"I…I was a little worried about you." Mary confessed, shyly adjusting her glasses. "You hadn't been to visit in a few days, and I thought maybe you were sick or hurt… or maybe you were tired of me." She spoke the last part quietly, but in the emptiness of the library it seemed more magnified than the rest of her sentence.

"Mary, it was nothing like that. I-I'd never get tired of you… you're so kind and-" Gray felt an ache in his chest. He had fucked up… he had fucked up so bad. This kind-hearted young woman was looking at him as if he could give her the world, her milky cheeks brushed with a rosy blush. "You're wonderful Mary." He concluded, praying that the Harvest Goddess herself would appear and strike him dead rather than him having to break Mary's heart.

But, Gray would have no such luck. Mary walked over to him and timidly looked into his eyes. "Y-You really think that about me?" She asked with a shaking voice.

She nervously took Gray's hand in her own after he admitted he did indeed think that about her; he thought the world about her. Mary's soft hands felt so nice against his overworked ones and Gray couldn't help but think that if he had just went home that night on the beach instead, he could know what those hands felt like on his face, his chest, all over him.

"Gray…" She spoke tenderly, as she almost always did. "We've known each other for quite sometime and…I-I really like when you come to visit me and I really like you..." Mary paused for a moment, taking a moment to wet her small pink lips which made Gray long to kiss her. "W-what I am trying to a-ask you Gray is… would you be interested in d-dating m-me?" Her voice was shaking, and Gray's heart was breaking.

What was he supposed to say? He sighed in frustration, pulling his hand away from Mary, startling her. Her doe eyes were watching him, wide and vulnerable, and Gray could see tears welling behind her lids. "Y-you don't feel the s-s-same?" She whispered out. "But you j-just said…"

"It's not that, Mary." Gray waked over one of the tables and sat down. He hid his face in his hands, rubbing his temples and Mary sat beside him, clearly confused by his actions. He had jus told her how amazing she was and now he was closing himself off from her again. "I really do like you…" He spoke in a voice so quiet Mary had to strain to hear.

Gray took a moment then gathered all his strength, sitting up straight now and looking at Mary's cherub face. He had to do this. It wasn't fair to anyone to stay quiet. She would find out eventually. "Have you heard the news that's going around town?" Gray asked, though he already knew the answer.

Still puzzled, Mary shook her head. "No, why?" she asked. Of course, she hadn't. Mary wasn't the gossiping type. Both her and her father were scholars and were better than he mindless chattering that tended to happen around town.

The blacksmith sighed again but brought his blue eyes to gaze into Mary's brown ones. Seeing the kindness of reflected in these eyes Gray knew she deserved honesty and so much love he couldn't give her. She deserved a hell of a lot better than him. "Claire is pregnant." Gray finally said.

Mary perked up a little. "That's so wonderful!" she chirped, not understanding what Gray was trying to tell her. "Claire has always seemed rather motherly. I bet she will be a very good mother and-"

"Mary." Gray interrupted, unable to drag this out any further. "I…I'm her baby's father."

A silence smothered the room, making it feel almost impossible to breathe. Mary's face was blank and Gray didn't know what to say or what to do…

"P-pardon?" Mary said after about a minute of heavy silence. "Wh-what…?"

Gray took a deep breath and tried again. "Claire is pregnant and it's my baby… We hooked up one night and we used protection but…" He paused feeling his own eyes fill with tears. "I'm so sorry Mary. But… it's my baby."

Gray watched Mary's heart shatter. He could clearly see the heartbreak and betrayal on his face as she stared at him, her mouth slightly agape. He had to look away, a single tear escaping and running down his cheek. He was the absolute worst.

"Get out." Gray snapped his head back to Mary who had tears readily dribbling down her face. Gray opened his mouth to try and explain or maybe apologize, but Mary put up her hand and shook her head. "No." she said in the steadiest voice Gray had ever heard her use. "Just get out. And please…don't come back."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter fourteen – Summer's End

It was the last week of Summer but the weather was holding; the sun was still shining and the temperature was still soaring. If this had been any other time Gray would have been on the beach, soaking up the rays with Kai, but at this moment he was at Claire's. The two had been all but shunned by most of the town folk so they had been sequestered together ever since Gray had told Mary the truth.

Gray was sitting on the floor by the bathroom door, Claire inside, fighting a losing battle with her stomach. "Have you been taking the morning sickness medicine the doctor prescribed?" Gray asked, his head lolling back against the wall; he felt useless.

"No, Gray! I just really enjoy being stomach sick and unable to do anything!" Claire growled from the bathroom, causing Gray to grimace. Why did it suddenly feel like he was back with his grandfather? "They're fucking useless!"

Gray could hear the water running from the sink, and a moment later Claire exited the bathroom, slumping to the floor besides Gray. "Sorry…" She said quietly, a hand resting on her stomach. "I just feel so shitty most of the time..."

"Nah, it was kind of a stupid question…" Gray offered her a weak smile but when Claire didn't smile back he sighed and wrapped an arm around her. "I'm sorry they didn't help…It must really suck to feel sick all day."

The farmer laid her head against Gray, not saying anything. Claire was really worrying Gray. She hadn't been herself since she found out about the baby, and between barley being able to maintain her farm and loosing her chick, Grace, she had been depressed. Gray did not know what he should do. He came down to her farm every day after wok and, helped out where he could, but Claire still seemed so defeated. Today, somehow, she seemed even more sullen than usual though…

Silently, Claire got to her feet and headed towards her bed. "I have something to show you." She stated. Gray was intrigued, getting up and following Claire to her bed. Claire rummaged through her night stand and Gray sat on the bed, patiently waiting. She turned towards him, a photo of some sort in her hand, and sat down beside him.

"Meet baby Duclerc." She spoke softly, handing the photo to Gray. It was a sonogram, he quickly realized, holding the photo with shaking hands. It took him a moment to find the baby in the picture, but once he saw it, he couldn't look away. That small _bean_ was his and Claire's child. He lowered the photo to Claire's stomach and knelt on the floor, trying to picture the bean growing in there.

Gray's reaction made her smile, and she ran her fingers through his blond hair. "Its weird to think they're really in there, isn't it?" Claire asked. Gray just nodded, mesmerised. "I didn't know they were going to do the scan or I would have asked if you wanted to come."

Claire ran her hand through his blond tresses again, and suddenly inappropriate thoughts started flooding her mind. Gray was between her legs, his arms resting on her legs, and she had her hands in his hair… The all to familiar ache was back in full force.

The blacksmith looked up at the farmer, concern on his face. "You only? I felt you tense up…" Gray asked, noticing the flush on her face. "Are you going to sick?"

Claire shook her head but refused to make eye contact with him. "J-just come sit on the bed." She answered. "Its weird to have you down there…"

"Oh!" Gray jumped to his feet, realizing that it was a bit awkward. "Sorry…I'd feel weird if you were between my legs like-" Now it was Gray's turn to blush, realizing how odd his word choice was. "Wait! Not like in a blow job-way. I just meant, like I just was with you! I-"

"Please, just sit down." Claire mumbled, putting her head in her hands to hide her face.

Gray obeyed, feeling like an idiot. Fuck. What if Claire thought he was a pervert now for his train of thought going to sex? Maybe she wouldn't have even noticed his bad wording if he had just shut up. But no, he had to point out it sounded like a blow job. Great…Now he couldn't get that image out of his head.

Gray looked over at Claire, who was still blushing heavily. He wanted to say something, but he was afraid that it would somehow make things more awkward. After a moment of quiet contemplation, Claire's blue eyes were gazing into Gray's and the next thing he knew, Claire was pressed against him, kissing him hungrily.

Gray had been surprised by the abruptness of Claire's kiss but he eagerly returned her passion. He placed a hand on the back of her head to deepen their kisses and Claire left out a soft moan, placing herself in his lap without breaking away from his lips. Claire bucked her hips against him, causing his erection to harden and push up against her through his pants.

He moaned her name, his hand moving to her breast, squeezing it gently through her shirt. The fabric rubbed against her nipple and Claire gasped in pleasure. Her breasts had become very sensitive lately and Gray's hands felt heavenly on them. She tore her t-shirt over her head and tossed it behind her. Her hands moved hurriedly to remove her constraining bra, the cups were almost over flowing and as soon as Claire had unclipped the hinderance, her breasts spilled out. Claire flung the useless garment to the side and brought Gray's hand back to her bare chest. The blacksmith rolled her pink nipple between his callused fingers and Claire shivered in pleasure, her back arching. Gray took her other nipple into his mouth, sucking gently at the pink bud as he squeezed the other. She tasted like salt here, probably from the heat, and when he used his tongue to lick around her nipple teasingly, Claire tangled her hand in his hair again, thrusting hard against him.

Gray carefully lifted her and set her on her back on the bed, her blonde hair spread around her like a golden, heavenly light. The young man leaned down and started kissing Claire's neck, starting at her jaw then kissing a straight line down her chest and over her stomach until he reached her shorts. Claire's face flushed as she watched him. He kissed down the front of her shorts, and then between her legs, where Gray could feel the heat and dampness through the cloth. "Please Gray…" Claire moaned, bucking her hips.

Feeling himself throb with desire, he could only imagine how Claire must have felt. He reached for the waistband of her shorts and painstakingly slowly pulled them and her panties down her toned, firm legs, revealing her gorgeous vulva, already slick from Gray's teasing. But Gray wasn't done yet. He came back up and placed himself between her legs, settling between her strong thighs before he started planting kisses over her mound. Each time he kissed her, she bucked against him, trying to urge him to give her what she wanted, but Gray was a horrible tease. He kissed the space where her leg joined her hip, licking the line her panties had left behind and Claire shivered with desire. Finally, Gray moved to her folds, licking slowly up one side and than the other, savouring her taste and feeling more aroused with each taste. He settled his tongue between her lips and started licked very gently, holding Claire's hips down so she couldn't try to thrust him in deeper. Gray dipped his tongue in further, being met with an even stronger taste as Claire was soaked. He slipped his tongue inside her and then slowly back out, repeating the movement a few more times before dragging his tongue from her core to her clit, earning a moan from the blonde woman. Gray swirled his tongue around the delicate bud, causing Claire to squirm beneath him and tangle her hand into his hair once again.

"Is here okay?" He asked, licking her from his lips.

"Perfect," She responded, and Gray went back to work. He began sucking on her clit, gently at first but then with increasing pressure as Claire moaned and writhed underneath him. He stopped sucking with a small 'pop' then licked her from her wet core, back to her clit his time pushing against her harder than before. Gray reached up with one of his hands and took her nipple back between his fingers, squeezing it as he sped up his licking, causing Claire's legs to shake and her back to arch.

"Please don't stop!" Claire moaned, her hips gyrating against Gray's mouth. 'Wouldn't dream of it' thought Gray as he kept a steady pace, with strong broad licks while he pinched Claire's nipple a little harder. This pushed Claire over the edge, wave after wave rushing over her as her whole body shook while she climaxed, Gray finishing her with a few more licks before bringing himself to sit next to her and look at her with a smirk.

She was still breathing heavily, her eyes shut as Gray tucked some of her hair behind her ear to get it off her face. "Good?" He asked, sounding cockier than he had intended to. Claire's blue eyes opened dreamily, and she nodded.

"Now we have to take care of you." Claire said, pointing to Gray's pants where his cock was straining against the fabric. He blushed when he noticed a wet spot forming at the tip of erection. He had been really turned on as he ate Claire out…

The farmer sat back in Gray's lap, lifting his t-shirt over his head and revealing his toned chest. Claire was almost as impressed this time as she was the first time she saw his chest. She found him incredibly sexy, noticing this time that he had sparse hair covering the top half of his chest and in a fine line leading down into his pants. Claire undid the button on his pants and with a little help from Gray, got him out of both his pants and boxers.

Gray seemed a little more comfortable now that his cock was free of its constrictions and Claire wasted no time bringing her lips to his tip, licking off the moisture that had collected there. Gray gasped as her tongue traced the tip of his cock and moaned in ecstasy when her warm, wet mouth took the rest of him in. She slid him in and out of her mouth slowly, then would speed up with no warning before slowly again to almost a stop. Gray looked down at her as she expertly bobbed her head up and down his shaft. _Fuck_. This was even hotter than he imagined…

Claire took her mouth from Gray's cock and brought moved to his ear. "Can we fuck?" She asked, Gray detecting a hint of embarrassment in her voice.

"Yeah," He said breathlessly. "If that's what you want to do."

"I need you." She moaned softly into his ear, causing him to flush wildly.

Claire reached over to the bedside table and pulled out a condom, ridding it of its packaging and returning to Gray's cock. She slid the condom down over his aching erection before sitting in his lap again. She kneeled and lined up the head of his cock with her entrance. Gray grabbed onto the bed sheets as she slid down his length, her walls squeezing him tightly.

Gray pulled Claire down to his face and kissed her lips feverishly. As he kissed her, Claire began bucking against him, moving him in and out of her and rubbing her clit against him in the process. She was still so worked up from before she knew that Gray would not need to do much to get her off again. Claire picked up her speed and Gray raised his hips to meet hers, moaning against her lips.

"I-I'm close already…" Claire whimpered, an embarrassed flush spreading over her cheeks.

Gray kept up his pace, and whispered in her ear "Well, come for me then."

Claire clenched her muscles, grinding against him until her muscles began to spasm in orgasm. She moaned his name and Gray bucked his hips against her, enjoying the way her orgasm gripped and grabbed at his cock. After Claire stopped shaking, Gray rolled them over, so he was on top, allowing him to thrust more quickly. Claire kept twitching inside, each trust seeming feeling more intense now, her orgasm making her more sensitive. She squeezed him tightly inside her as she rolled her hips, meeting Gray's over and over.

It wasn't much longer and Gray was moaning Claire's name, his body trembling as he emptied himself inside her. Both were panting as Gray pulled himself out and flopped down beside Claire. Gray's head was full of thoughts as he laid there, trying to catch his breath. Was that a good idea? Would they do this again? He thought about how nice it felt to kiss and hold Claire and couldn't help but wonder if Claire felt anything for him, besides lust. Gray took the condom off and tossed it in the waste bin by the bed. Maybe he and Claire could give dating a shot…

Gray looked over at Claire and was shocked to find her crying. "Claire… What's wrong?" He felt panic rise in his chest as she buried her face into his chest. He held her close. "D-did I hurt you?" He asked, worriedly.

The farmer shook her head but continued to sob. Gray rubbed her back as his mind raced. Did she hate him? Did she regret the sex? What in the world was happening?

"I'm leaving, Gray." Claire said finally.

This didn't clarify anything to Gray. "What do you mean?" He asked, maybe even more confused now.

Claire pulled away from Gray and wiped her eyes. "I am moving back to the city…" She whimpered. Gray's jaw dropped but Claire continued. "I can't keep working on the farm like this. I don't want to give up, I really don't, but this pregnancy has made it too difficult. I tried to keep on going, Gray but I am always sick and exhausted, and I just can't…" Claire was crying again now.

Gray gently wrapped one of her thin bed sheets around her, hoping to provide her some comfort. Gray couldn't imagine how hard this decision must have been for Claire. She loved her farm and always looked so happy when she was out in her fields. Gray felt guilt wash over him. This was his fault. He did this to her. Even though he knew Claire loved the baby, if there had been no baby Claire would still be living happily on her farm.

Claire had composed herself a little now, pulling the bed sheet around her tightly. "Your life might go back to normal if I'm not here. You can go back to the way things were before I showed up. Mary might even forgive you if you give her enough time…" Claire took a deep breath, a hand resting on her small stomach. If she removed herself from Mineral Town, Gray might be able to salvage his life here. He was one of them after all. "You can come see the baby once they're born if you want. Or you can forget we exist. I understand if you don't want to stick around."

Gray felt as if Claire had reached into his chest and tore out his heart. How could he forget about Claire? Let alone their baby! "I would never abandon the two of you like that, Claire." He reached down and placed his hand with hers on her stomach. Claire let it rest there for a moment before getting up and gathering her clothes.

"I appreciate that, Gray. You're a good guy." Claire said as she pulled back on her t-shirt and slipped back on her shorts.

Gray certainly didn't feel like a good guy… he found his pants and put them on, overcome with so many questions and thoughts that he felt unable to put any of his feelings into words.

Claire was handing him his shirt now. "I am leaving the first week of Fall." She said simply, and that was it.


	15. Chapter 15

The old blacksmith was just about at his wits end. The past month with his grandson had been a whirlwind. In the beginning of Summer, his work had been top notch but as time wore on, his quality and workmanship had been as inconsistent as a teen's emotions. For once, Saibara was at a loss for what to do. He had tried yelling, which normally got Gray to pull his head out of his ass, but it did not snap his grandson out of it. Worst of all, Gray knew he was fucking up. He didn't fight back against his grandfather's critiques and Saibara had caught him several times inspecting his own work, only to curse and throw it away.

Now, sitting in front of him, was a very poor-quality bar of copper, so the elder yelled out for Gray, "Boy, get out here!" he called into the back.

Gray appeared a few moments later, several of his fingers bandaged from being distracted while working. He looked tired and worn down and something about that pulled at the paternal heart strings of old Saibara. So instead of yelling, Saibara took a deep breath and looked at his grandson seriously. "I don't need to tell you your work has been unacceptable lately." Gray opened his mouth to explain or defend himself but Saibara continued on. "Gray, what is going on? You know I don't care what you do outside work, but when it affects your work so seriously… I need to ask."

Gray sat down on the bench Saibara had out for customers and sighed deeply. "I'm sure you heard the rumors about Claire." Gray looked at his grandfather but saw no reaction in his features, so he continued, "The one about her being pregnant with my kid?"

"Ah." Saibara nodded. Despite his best efforts, even Saibara would hear gossip around town from time to time and this had been no exception. "Yes. So, I am going to be a great grandfather after all?"

"Yeah, you are." The apprentice blacksmith removed his hat and ran his hand through his hair with a sigh. "But…its not just that." Saibara raised a white eyebrow and was almost afraid to ask what else could possibly be bothering him.

"Claire…She's giving up the farm and moving back to the city and…" Gray let out a frustrated sigh. "Gramps, she wanted me to just forget that the baby and her exist! How am I supposed to do that? Especially after we've spent the whole summer together. I could never forget about her. I could never forget that she's out there somewhere in the world living with _our_ baby, without me." Gray's voice was wrought with emotion and his heart ached. "I can't imagine my future, my life, without them in it."

Now Gray was staring at his grandfather, waiting for him to yell at him, to berate him for being so careless, or to just tell him to forget it and focus on work… but he didn't do any of those things. He crossed his arms and stated as if it was the most simple and obvious thing in the word, "Sounds like love, to me."

And just like that all the puzzle pieces snapped into place. The picture he had been looking at for so long suddenly became clear. Gray stood in front of his grandfather, mouth agape. _Of course_. He loved Claire. He loved their baby… how could he have not realized this until now?

His second realization hit him like a bucket of cold water: the woman he loved was moving. Right at this very moment she was packing up all her things and getting ready to move far away from him. What was he supposed to do? He couldn't let her leave!

"I have to go to her!" Gray exclaimed so suddenly that Saibara jumped. Gray stood up, sending his hat falling to the floor and he rushed out the door.

"Hey! I didn't say you could leave!" His grandfather called after him angrily.

"So, you'll come and get the animals on Wednesday?" Claire asked into the receiver of her phone. The man on the other line was her brother and fellow farmer, Jack.

"If Wednesday works for you, it works for me. Though, I am probably going to have to bring JJ with me. But I am sure he will be happy to see auntie Claire, right?" Her brother responded, his toddler babbling happily in the background about going on a car ride with dad. After a brief pause Jack spoke up, "But Claire… are you sure this is what you want?"

Claire looked out her window where her summer crops had been shrivelled by the autumn wind. She hadn't even bothered to uproot them. There was no point. "Yeah… This is the way it has to be, Jack."

"Alright then… I guess I'll see you Wednesday then."

"See you Wednesday, Jack."

Claire placed the phone back in the receiver and sighed as she looked around her little house. There were several boxes already packed and lined up against the walls. She had always imagined that this was going to be the last house she lived in. She pictured herself getting married here, raising her kids on the farm, and growing old inside these four walls… but now she was going to live in a small apartment in a city where the concrete stretched for miles with no grass in sight.

She had only been a farmer for half a year but already she couldn't imagine a life where the only greenery was a houseplant. She had truly thought that she had found her home here amongst the trees and under the blue Mineral Town sky, but the universe seemed to have other plans for her…

"CLAIRE!"

She jumped the sound of her name being yelled outside before she made her way outside. "Why is it always you yelling in my fields?" Claire asked with a half-hearted smile when she saw that her visitor was Gray. She had only seen him twice since she told him that she was leaving and she thought that was probably for thee best; why make things harder than they needed to be? "What is so important that you're out here scaring the cattle?"

Gray, panting from the sprint he had done from his grandpa's shop to the farm, turned to look at Claire where she stood in her doorway. He made his way to her, each step feeling like it took an eternity and his heart pounding in his chest. "Claire…" He repeated, "Y-you can't leave!"

The farmer quirked an eyebrow, a flicker of annoyance in her tone. "What are you talking about?" Was he kidding right now? She would be leaving in less than a week and she had finally come to terms with the fact she had to go, and here he was trying to change her mind. "Gray, I think we've already gone through all the reasons why it's best if I leave."

"No! Its not best for anyone if you leave." Gray argued; his voice firm as sweat dripped down his face. "You need to stay."

Being the stubborn woman she was, Claire didn't enjoy being told what to do, nor was she enjoying Gray just barging onto her farm and disrupting her plans. He was upsetting her now. Did he think she wanted to leave? Claire glared at the man in front of her. "I've already told you, Gray… I can't keep up with the farm and its only going to get worse as my stomach gets bigger. Not to mention we've been shunned by most of the town…" Claire put her hand on her stomach as she blinked away tears. Goddess, how she wanted to stay, but the fact was that she couldn't.

"Give me one good reason I should even consider staying here." Her voice was shaking.

Gray moved closer to the beautiful woman in front of him. He gently cupped her face and brought his face close to hers. "This." He whispered before gently pressing his lips against hers. Claire was surprised at first and couldn't help but think that this was exactly got her into the predicament in the first place, but after a moment her eyes fluttered shut and she kissed him back.

Gray couldn't describe the relief that flooded over him once Claire returned his kiss. He had been so afraid she would push him away and he wouldn't get a chance to explain himself. Slowly, Gray pulled back from Claire and looked deeply into her bright blue eyes. "Claire… I love you." He moved his hand down to her stomach. "I love you both. So much… I can't imagine a better reason than that."

Claire was flabbergasted. "But…but the farm-"

"I can move in with you! I can help you with the crops before I go to work, or we can downsize your crops just for fall and we can use the money I'd normally use for rent to make up the difference." Gray's mind became a solution finding machine, his brain working overtime to keep Claire with him. "We can get married! We wouldn't be the first couple to get married because they had a baby on the way. And I already know I love you, so why not?" Gray paused and looked deeply into Claire's eyes so she knew he meant everything he was saying. "I might not have all the answers for everything Claire, but I can promise you that I will do anything to keep you here with me."

By now Claire was readily crying, her heart feeling like it could burst. Things seemed so natural with Gray, so easy especially when she compared them to her interactions with Rick. Gray had always been there when she needed him in the past and now here he was again, offering her her dreams on a silver platter. She could keep her farm, she wouldn't have to move, she could raise her baby among the grass and vegetables and animals for whom she cared so much. She could have a family.

Gray gently wiped away some of her tears and Claire wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close. "You really want to marry me?" She whispered.

"More than anything." Gray replied, kissing the top of her head.

The farmer gently pressed her lips against his. "Then yes, I will marry you Gray." She replied, her heart fuller than she could ever have imagined.

"I'll make you a ring." Gray declared, interlocking their fingers as he gazed at her lovingly. "The best one I can."

Claire simply smiled, hugging him tightly as she rested her head on his shoulder. "As long as I have you, I don't need anything else."

A/N: Well folks, that's the end! Let me know what you thought 3


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